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AGRICULTURE 

A Text for the School and the Farm 



By 
O. H. BENSON 

AGRICULTURIST. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULItmi 

and 

GEORGE HERBERT BETTS 

AUTHOR OF THE MIND AND ITS EDUCATION 
BETTER RURAL SCHOOLS. ETC. 



WITH ILLUSTRATIONS, CHARTS AND 
DIAGRAMS 



192 1 

INDIANAPOLIS 

THE BOBB8-MERRILL COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 



Copyright 1915, 1921 
The Bobbs-Merrill Comhany 






/ 



/. 



Printloit «nd Binding hy 

Bookwulter-Ball Printing CompaDy 

Indiaoapolis, Indiana 



\ 



MAY 18 1921 
0)CI.A617054 



"I know of no pursuit in which more real and 
important service can be rendered to any country 
than improving its agriculture." 

Geok.ce Washington 



AUTHORS' ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 

Acknowledgment is gratefully made to the Minister of 
Agriculture, Canada, for the illustration on page 209; the 
United States Department of Agriculture for the illustra- 
tions on pages 17, 40, 65, 68, 75, ']'], 82, 85, 93, 105, 120, 125, 
129, 147, 149, 151, 186, 189, 193, 194, 196, 198, 209, 213, 
273, 278, 280, 284, 286, 298, 299, 303, 309, 317, 318, 321, 
325, 328, 350, 352, 353, 355, z^2, 364, 369, 397 ; the Poultry 
Department of the Massachusetts College of Agriculture, 
pages 357,364,366; the Kansas State College of Agriculture, 
pages 42, 45; the Alabama Polytechnic Institute, page 173; 
the Washington State College of Agriculture, page 339 ; the 
Iowa State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, pages 
15, 19, 28, 55, 123, 139, 243; the College of Agriculture of 
the Illinois State University, pages 233, 239, 320, 323 ; the 
College of Agriculture of the University of Wisconsin, 
pages 187, 190, 192, 195, 199; the College of Agriculture of 
the State University of Minnesota, pages 348, 372; the Col- 
lege of Agriculture of the University of Ohio, page 129; 
Ine Yakima Commercial Club of the State of Washington, 
pages 155, 182, 269, 338; the Crop Improvements Commit- 
tee, Board of Trade Building, Chicago, page 39; Wallace's 
Farmer, Des Moines, Iowa, page 393 ; the Agricultural De- 
partment of the International Harvester Company of Chi- 
cago, pages 51, 68, 89, 135, 137, 142, 144, 157; the James 
Manufacturing Company, Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, pages 
239, 246, 411; the DeLaval Separator Company of New 
York City, page 383 ; the Lehigh Portland Cement Com- 
pany, of Chicago, page 430; the Northern Pacific Railway, 
page 341 ; the Hoosier Manufacturing Company, New 
Castle, Indiana, page 380, and the David McKay Publish- 
ers, Washington Square, Philadelphia, Pa., pages 413, 414, 
415- 



PREFACE 

The present volume attempts what has not yet been ac- 
complished in elementary texts on agriculture — the combin- 
ing of real practical information with concrete home and 
school projects to be carried out by the pupils. Agriculture, 
of all subjects, can not be taught from within a text-book. 
Nor, on the other hand, can it be well taught by the teacher 
who is not a specialist without a good text-book by means 
of which to unify the instruction and lead to an intelligent 
interest in the farm and its problems. Unless the pupils 
busy themselves with actual agricultural activities, the study 
becomes mere theory and of doubtful value. This 'ext is a 
guide to concrete work and interest on the farm, in the 
garden and about the home. 

Yet the text is more than a laboratory guide. It gives a 
large amount of practical, scientific information wholly 
without technical terms. Further, this information is al- 
ways so immediately related to definite farm projects as to 
have meaning and application. Scientific facts and their use 
go hand in hand. Theory and practise are never divorced. 
The old maxim, "Learn to do by doing," is constantly fol- 
lowed, and the doing made natural and worth while to the 
child by being connected with his home interests. 

Hardly a day's assignment occurs in the book, therefore, 
that does not present some real project for the pupils to 
carry out in connection with the farm or home life. Nor 
are the problems set the child lacking the information and 
guidance necessary to their intellig-ent solution. The re- 



PREFACE 

quired facts, principles and descriptions are always at hand, 
and the problem or project made tlie means of teaching some 
valuable lesson in concrete form. 

The authors believe that the elementary features of agri- 
culture can be successfully taught without technicalities. It 
has been their aim to present a treatment so clear that stu- 
dents from fourteen to eighteen years of age could read and 
profit by it even without a teacher. They have also tried to 
make the subject-matter so vital and helpful that all who are 
interested in agriculture, even practical farmers, will care to 
read it, and desire to carry out its lessons in practise. 
I , Teachers will recognize and welcome the attempt to use 
the study of agriculture in bringing about a closer relation 
between the school and the home. Not only teachers, but 
county superintendents and agricultural agents will appre- 
ciate the many helpful suggestions concerning Demonstra- 
tion Work, Play Contests and Agricultural Club Projects ; 
for these are coming to occupy an important place in agri- 
cultural education. The great amount of care given to make 
the lessons teachable through the outlining of many definite 
and practical laboratory, field and home projects will appeal 
to all who use the text, and save much time for the busy 
teacher. 

The authors gratefully render their acknowledgments for 
much cordial help received from the staffs of various state 
colleges of agriculture and the United States Department of 
Agriculture. Especially valuable have been the suggestions 
and material received from the colleges of agriculture of 
Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, New York, Massa- 
chusetts, Alabama, Minnesota, Kansas and Nebraska. 



CONTENTS 

PART I. FARM CROPS 

CHAPTER FAGK 

I Corn Culture I 

Corn the king of crops — The "corn belt" — The corn plant 
— Determining the stand — Stand in the home field — Corn 
enemies — Topics for investigation — ^Saving the seed — Types 
of corn — The selection bed — Corn judging with score-card 
— Testing the seed — Problems and experiments — Preparing 
seed for the planter — Seed bed and planting — Cultivating 
the corn — Harvesting and storing — The silo — Uses of corn 
— Topics for investigation — Corn demonstrations — Corn 
play contests — Corn club projects. 

II Wheat . . ... . . . . . . .64 

Bread the staff of life — Importance of vi^heat — The wheat 
states — Types of wheat — Topics for investigation — Growing 
the crop — Diseases and insect enemies — Treatment of fun- 
gous enemies — Treatment of insect enemies — Problems and 
experiments. 

III Oats 80 

Importance of oats as a crop — The oats region — Types of 
oats — Problems and experiments — Raising the crop — Har- 
vesting and thrashing — Insect enemies and diseases — Topics 
for investigation — Wheat and oat demonstrations — Play 
contests — Club projects. 

IV The Potato .98 

Origin — Plant and tuber — Potatoes as a farm crop — The 
potato region — Growing the crop — Harvesting and storing 
potatoes — Seed selection — The "tuber-unit" method — Potato 
enemies — Problems and experiments — Potato demonstra- 
tions — Play contests — Potato clubs. 

V Forage Crops 11) 

The place of forage crops — Important grasses and le- 
gumes — Region and extent of forage crops — Uses to which 
the forage plants are put — Problems and experiments—- 
Demonstrations — Club projects. 



CONTENTS— (Continued) 

CHAPTER PAGE 

VI The Clovers 119 

Wide use of the clovers — Red clover — Study of the plant 
— Value of red clover on the farm — Raising red clover — 
Seed bed and seeding — Good seed — Harvesting — Enemies 
and their control — Other kinds of clover — Problems for in- 
vestigation. 

VII Alfalfa 133 

Study of plant — Distribution of alfalfa — Alfalfa as a 
forage crop — As a renewer of the soil — Successful raising 
of alfalfa — Harvesting — Enemies — Topics for investigation. 

VIII Other Legumes . 146 

The cow-pea — Cow-peas as forage — As a soil renewer — 
The vetches — Varieties — Uses — Soy-beans — Uses and culti- 
vation — Feeding value — The peanut. 

IX Meadows and Pastures ........ 154 

Importance of meadows and pastures — Requirements of a 
meadow — Meadow grasses and legumes — Mixtures for 
meadows — Care of meadows — Problems for investigation — 
Pastures — Requirements — Seed mixtures — Care. 



PART II. HORTICULTURE 

X The Vegetable Garden ........ 165 

Importance of garden — Location and soil — Plan — Table 
of planting and maturing — Garden culture — The hotbed — 
Insect enemies — Other enemies — Problems and experiments 
— Garden demonstrations — Play contests — Qub and canning 
projects. 

KI The Fruit Garden . .180 

Profits and satisfaction — Soil and location — Plan — A vari- 
ety list — Care of fruit garden — Enemies and their treatment 
— Spraying — Problems and experiments — Demonstrations — 
Play contests — Fruit clubs. 

XII The Tomato o . 201 

Importance of the tomato — Varieties — Raising the crop — 
Pruning and staking — Harvesting and marketing — Problems 
and experiments — Demonstrations — Play contests — Clubs. 



CONTENTS— (Continued) 

CHAPTER PAGE 

XIII Garden and Orchard Sprays 208 

Indispensable in successful gardening — Bordeaux mixture 
— Use — Lime-sulphur — How made and used — Arsenate of 
lead — Mixing and applying — Paris green — Kerosene emul- 
sion — How made and used — Resin-lime mixture. 

XIV Home Canning of Fruits and Vegetables . . . 217 

Value of home canned foods — Recipes for home canning 
— Time table for canning — Canning outfits. 

PART III. THE SOIL 

XV Nature of Soil 225 

Origin of soil — Nature of soil — Organic matter — Texture 
and its effects — Structure of soils — Structure and tilth — 
Erosion — Problems and experiments. 

XVI Soil Fertility and Plant Growth 236 

Plant food and soil fertility — Loss of fertility — Maintain- 
ing fertility — Barnyard manure as a fertilizer — Preventing 
loss from manure — Application to soil — Green manuring — 
Commercial fertilizers — Use of lime on soils — Crop rota- 
tion and fertility. 

XVII Soil Moisture 251 

Forms of soil water — Capacity of soils for capillary 
water — Tillage and soil water — Soil drainage — Surface and 
tile drains — Soil demonstrations — Problems and experiments 
— Soil play contests — Club work. 

PART IV. FARM ANIMALS 

XVIII Farm Animals and Agriculture 265 

Work anirnals — Animals that supply food — Other animal 
products — Topics for investigation. 

XIX Cattle 272 

Dairy cattle — Profitable and unprofitable cows — The dairy 
type — Selecting dairy cows by milk tests — Dairy breeds — 
Feeding for milk production — Producing clean milk — Beef 
breeds — Judging cattle — Tuberculosis in cattle — Experi- 
ments and problems — Demonstrations with cattle — Play 
contests — Club projects. 



CONTENTS— (Continued) 

CITAPTER PACB 

XX Horses 296 

The horse-raising states — Classes of horses — Breeds — 
Judging horses — Common defects of horses — Care and 
training — I'Veding: wcirk rations — Topics for investigation — ■ 
Hcmonslrations with horses — Play contests — Club projects. 

XXI SvviNE 315 

Pork region — Breeds of hogs — Care hog houses — Feeding: 
balanced rations — Diseases — Prevention and treatment of 
cliolera — Proi)lems and experiments — Demonstrations — 
Play contests — Club projects. 

XXII Sheep 336 

Importance on farm— Breeds of sheep — Feeding: rations 
— l<]xperimenls and problems — Demonstrations — Play con- 
tests — Club work. 

XXI II Poultry 346 

Importance on farm — Extent of industry — Breeds of 
cliiclvens — Producing diickens — Hens and incubator.s — Test- 
ing eggs — I'Veding chickens — Producing an<l marketing eggs 
— Housing poultry — Poultry diseases — Topics for investiga- 
tion — Poultry demonstrations — Play contests — Club projects. 



PART V. FARM ECONOMICS 

XXIV Farm and Home Management 375 

Planning the farm — Administration of farms — Farm 
accounts — Important rules — len commandments of agricul- 
ture — Topics for investigation — The farm house — Other 
farm buildings. 

XXV The Home Grounds and Wood Lot .... 389 

Beautifying the home grounds — Trees — The lawn — The 
farm wood lot — Tree enemies — Problems and experiments 
— Demonstrations — Play contests — Tree and grounds club. 

XXVI The County Agricultural Agent .... 401 

Work of the county agent — Financial support — The 
county agent and the school — How to make use of the 
county agent. 



CONTENTS— (Continued) 

CHAPTER PAGE 

XXVII Farm Implements and Mechanics .... 408 

Importance of implements and tools — Farm mechanics — 
Use of cement — Shop work — Rope tying and splicing — 
Problems and experiments — Play contests — Club projects. 

KXXVIII Road Building and Maintenance .... 420 

Importance of good roads — Types of roads — Location of 
a road — Qualities making a good road — Construction of 
earth roads — Maintenance — Topics for investigation — Road 
demonstrations — Road clubs. 

XXIX Birds and Other Insect Destroyers .... 432 

Birds and their food — Birds helpful to agriculture — 
Harmful birds — Protecting birds — Topics for investigation 
— Other insect destroyers. 

XXX Miscellaneous Information 441 

How to remove stains — Location of colleges of agricul- 
ture and experiment stations — Distance apart for planting 
fruits and vegetables — Quantity of seed per acre for 
planting. 



Index 



AGRICULTURE 



AGRICULTURE 



PART I. FARM CROPS 



CHAPTER I 
CORN CULTURE 

CORN is king of farm crops. The value of the corn 
crop is almost equal to that of cotton, wheat and oats 
combined, and totals more than a billion dollars annually. 
We feed our stock upon corn, eat it for our own food and 
use it in many other ways. The welfare and prosperity of 
millions of people are dependent on securing a good crop 
of corn. 

Three-fourths of the corn crop of the world is grown in 
the United States. Each year we produce more than 
2,500,000,000 bushels. Should we load this enormous crop 
into wagons, fifty bushels to the load, and allow twenty feet 
for each wagon and team, the line would reach about eight 
times around the earth at the equator. 

Taking the whole country together, the average yield 
of corn per acre is slightly less than thirty bushels. The 
states best adapted to corn raising are Illinois, Iowa, Ne- 
braska, Missouri, Kansas, Indiana and Ohio. These seven 
states, which are called the "corn belt" of the United States, 
raise nearly half of all the world's corn. In them the yield 
is somewhat over forty bushels to the acre. This is a much 
smaller crop than could be raised if the soil were enriched, 
and greater care and skill used in growing the crop. A 

1 



2 AGRICULTURE 

large number of com club boys in different states have pro- 
duced as much as one hundred fifty bushels from an acre, 
and not a few in the southern states have raised more than 
two hundred bushels. One of the things we shall try to 
learn in this book is how to raise a larger crop of corn from 
our fields. 

1. The Corn Plant 

Corn belongs to the grass family ; that is, it is a member 
of the same group of plants as timothy, wheat, rye, or blue- 
grass. 

In order to study the corn plant itself, each of the class 
will secure from a near-by field, or bring from home, a com- 
plete stalk of corn, taking care to save as much of the 
root as possible. Then use the text as a help in studying 
the plant. 

The roots. — Examining the roots, do you find them 
tough and fibrous, or tender? Do the roots branch, or is 
there a central tap root? At earing time the roots of a 
vigorous plant may extend down several feet, and spread 
out so that they meet the roots from other hills. The 
ground of a corn-field may thus be completely filled with 
roots. In dry seasons the roots strike deeper than in wet 
seasons. Why ? Would you expect the roots to run deeper 
in a black porous soil, or in a hard clay subsoil? 

Are there roots branching from the lower one or two 
joints of the stalk, thus starting from above the top of the 
ground ? Roots growing in this way are called bf-ace roots. 
They act like the guy ropes of a tent pole, and hold the stalk 
erect in the winds. If these are broken off by close plow- 
ing, or destroyed by worms, the corn is easily blown down. 

The stem. — How long is the stem ? What is its girth 
just above the root? How many leaves has it? From 
where do these start? How are they attached? Are the 




A good stand of corn. The yield was 105 bushels to the acre. 
The boy tested the seed. 



4 AGRICULTURE 

edges of the blades longer than the center? What proof 
have you ? 

The length of the stem varies with different varieties of 
corn, and because of differences in the season or the soil. 
The range is from two or three feet to fifteen or twenty feet. 
The stem is divided by joints called nodes; the sections be- 
tween these joints are called intcrnodes. 

Is the stem round, or flattened? Cut the stem across 
and note the structure. Unlike most other grasses, corn is 
not hollow. The spongy substance with which the hard 
outside shell is filled is called pith. The threads found run- 
ning lengthwise through the pith add greatly to the strength 
of the stalk. 

The leaves. — ^The leaves are important in the growth 
of the plant, since in them the plant food is worked over 
and assimilated, and through them the respiration, or breath- 
ing, of the plant is done. The leaves are large, and hence 
have to stand much tugging in the wind. Are they stronger 
because of their sheath-like form of attachment? WillViey 
tear as easily in a strong wind if the outer edges are slight- 
ly longer than the center ? Large vigorous leaves indicate a 
healthy plant. In very dry weather, the leaves curl up from 
the edges. This is a useful habit, since the leaf when thus 
rolled up does not lose so much moisture as when fully 
open. 

Tassel and silk. — Strip the husk carefully from an 
ear in the milk stage, without injuring the silks. How 
many silks are there? Where are the silks attached to the 
ear? While tassel and silk are borne on diflferent parts of 
the plant, yet it takes both together to make the complete 
flower of the corn and produce the ear. The tassel repre- 
sents the male part, and the silk the female part of the 
flower. 

The work of the tassel is to produce poUcu. This sifts 



CORN CULTURE 5 

off in fine grains just as the corn is silking. A particle of 
pollen lodges on the tip of a silk, and a growth is carried 
through the center of the tiny thread to its root, where the 
kernel forms. The pollen in this way fertilises the silks, 
one silk for each kernel of corn. If for any reason no 
fertilization occurs, no kernels will be formed. 

The pollen grains are very light, and may be carried by 
the wind for many rods, thus fertilizing the silks of other 
plants than their own. This is called cross-fertilisation. 
The reason different varieties of corn planted in near-by 
fields mix is because the pollen is carried from one field 
to the other. 

Have you ever seen an ear with part of the kernels 
white and the rest red, or yellow? How is this to be ex- 
plained ? A small patch of pop-corn planted near field corn 
turned out to be badly mixed, although the seed used was 
pure. How do you account for the mixture ? 

2. Determining the Stand 

In order to raise a full yield of corn we must first of all 
have a good stand. Corn is usually planted in rows about 
three and a half feet apart each way. On good com land 
three stalks seem to make the best hill. It is plain that if 
the hills have but one or two stalks each, or if whole hills 
are frequently missing, there can not be a full crop. 

Importance of a good stand. — Farmers often lose 
much of their labor and a large amount of money because 
of a poor stand of corn. It requires as much work to pre- 
pare the ground and cultivate the corn for half or two- 
thirds of a stand as if every hill was present and had its 
three stalks. 

How is it with the farms in your own neighborhood? 
With vour father's farm? What kind of a stand do the 



6 AGRICULTURE 

corn-fields show? The best way to answer this question is 
to go out into the fields and count the hills. This is the 
way the scientist works ; he makes sure, and does not guess. 
We will therefore determine the stand on several plots se- 
lected from diflr'erent parts -of a field of corn and discover 
whether the farmer is losing labor and money because the 
stand is imperfect. 

Preparing for field study. — Before going out to the 
field rule off four forms like the following in your note- 
book, each square to represent a hill of corn : 



3. Record of Sta}id of Corn 



PLOT NO. 



Counting stand in the field. — Now go to a near-by field 
and select what appears to be an average plot of corn, ten 
hills square. Go through the plot carefully, counting the 
stalks in each hill, and recording the number in the proper 



CORN CULTURE 7 

square on your record sheet. Hills having more than three 
stalks are to be recorded as having only three, as three 
stalks to the hill make the best stand on average soil, if 
planted three and one-half feet each way. 

Having completed the count on this plot, select three 
other plots in different parts of the field, count the hills 
and make the record in your note-book for each plot sepa- 
rately. We are now ready to estimate the stand for the 
entire field. To do this, we shall need to work out the 
following problems, keeping the results in our note-books : 

1. If every hill had three stalks, how many stalks 
would there be on each plot? How many on all four 
plots ? 

2. How many hills in each of the plots had three stalks ? 
Two stalks? One stalk? No stalk? How many stalks 
altogether in each of the plots?' In all the plots combined? 

3. What percentage of a perfect stand do all four plots 
average? If the entire field averages as good a stand as 
the plots, what percentage of a stand has it ? 

4. How many acres in the entire field? How many 
acres did the farmer plow and tend which, because of an 
imperfect stand, raised no corn ? 

5. What will this field probably yield to the acre? 
Suppose the ears would still average the same size, what 
would it yield with a perfect stand ? At the market price of 
corn, what difference in value would this make per acre? 
For the whole field? 

Counting stand in home fields. — After having made 
this study, you will naturally want to know about your 
home fields of corn. Therefore prepare other record sheets 
in your note-books, and count the stand on four different 
plots of your father's corn, making careful records as you 
did in the first study. Then work out the five problems for 
the home field as you did for the field studied at school. 
Show the results to your father, and talk with him about 



8 AGRICULTURE 

the cause of the imperfect stand. Also compare your re- 
sults with the stand found in the home fields of other mem- 
bers of the class, and see if you can discover what produces 
the differences in stand. Barring bad weather at planting 
time, worms and other pests, at least a ninety-five per cent, 
stand should always be secured. 

Barren stalks and suckers. — Merely having the right 
number of stalks in the field does not insure a crop, however. 
These stalks must bear ears. There are two classes of 
stalks that are of no use, ban-en stalks and suckers. 

Strong and vigorous-looking stalks may be barren. Bar- 
renness may be caused by weak seed, injuries to the roots 
by worms or insects, diseases, poor soil, drought, or too thick 
planting. Suckers are but branches from the parent stalks, 
and have no root of their own. They are worse than useless, 
for they seldom bear ears, and are but a drain on the stalk 
which supports them. Suckers are caused by thin planting, 
especially in rich heavy land. There are also some strains 
of com which, through heredity, are likely to grow suckers. 
Seed from sucker-bearing stalks should not be planted. 

Counting barren stalks and suckers. — We shall now 
determine the percentage of barren stalks and suckers in a 
field. Take either the plots already counted for stand or 
new ones, and go over them, counting the ears. Make a 
record sheet of squares as before. In tliese squares record 
(1) the number of stalks that has two ears, (2) that has 
one ear, (3) that has no ear. Do this for each of four 
plots ten hills square. 

Summing Up Results 

1. What percentage of the stalks bears two ears? One 
ear? 

2. What percentage of stalks is barren? If tliis per- 
centage holds for the entire fieM, how much is the yield 



CORN CULTURE 9 

reduced per acre, supposing the field as it now stands will 
yield forty bushels ? 

3. What percentage of the stalks bears suckers? How 
many of the suckers had ears? 

4. What do you judge was the cause of the barren 
stalks? Of the suckers? 

4. Corn Enemies 

Plants, like animals, are subject to certain diseases. 
Corn is usually a healthy plant, and not affected by as 
many diseases as some of the other crops. The most seri- 
ous enemies of corn are various insects, such as the corn- 
root worm, the corn-root aphis or louse, the cutworm, the 
ear worm ; and such animals as gophers, squirrels and birds. 

The corn-root worm. — This pest is responsible, over 
a large area of the country, for greater loss to the corn crop 
than any other cause except poor seed, and often probably 
inflicts more damage than all other insects put together. 
It has been estimated that its damage in the corn belt alone 
exceeds 200,000,000 bushels annually. Because the root 
worm is very small and does its work under ground, it is 
seldom seen, and probably could not be identified by many 
farmers to whom it has caused thousands of dollars of 
loss. It is present in some degree in almost every corn- 
field. 

At full size the root worm is about one-third inch in 
length, and as large around as a pin. It is whitish in color, 
with its head and the first segment of its body brown. The 
root worm hatches in June or early July, and reaches its 
full growth by the first of August. Soon after this it goes 
into the pupa state, and in a few days comes out a small 
green beetle. This beetle lays the eggs, which remain in 
the ground over winter and hatch the next generation of 
root worms the following spring. 

As soon as the young worms are hatched out they enter 



CORN CULTURE 11 

the roots of the growing corn, burrowing back and forth 
just under the outside covering. Half a dozen worms are 
sometimes found in the one root, and as many as two hun- 
dred in a single hill. The worm destroys the tender part of 
the root, which turns brown and rots off, leaving only the 
stubs of roots. As a result, the stalk of corn is deprived of 
its means of securing moisture and nourishment. It seems 
to stand still instead of making a vigorous growth, and 
fires badly during the dry weather of July and August. 
It is easily blown over, especially after a rain when the 
ground is soft. The yield is greatly reduced, and the ears 
are light and chaffy ; many stalks are barren. The growth 
of the plant is retarded, and the crop is later in maturing. 

There is no way of stopping these pests once they begin 
on a field of corn. But the remedy is simple for the next 
year — wherever possible plant the field to some other crop. 
For this will leave the young worms with no food, and 
they will all die. The field can then be planted to corn 
again, and should be free from root worms for at least 
the first year. Usually corn should not be raised for 
more than two years in succession on the same field. Es- 
pecially if the corn goes down in spots in August, and if 
the roots show the working of these worms, should com 
not follow the next season. If proper rotation of crops is 
practised, there will be little or no loss from the root worm. 

The corn-root aphis or louse. — Second to the root 
worm, the zvorst enemy of corn is the corn-root aphis. This 
is a small louse, no larger 'than the head of a pin, and of a 
bluish-green color. These lice are found in groups on the 
roots of corn, from which they suck the juices intended for 
the growth of the plant. 

The corn-root aphis is always found accompanied by 
ants. Indeed, it is the ants which carry the lice to the 



12 AGRICULTURE 

com roots, or to the roots of certain weeds after the com 
roots have become hard. The ants take this care of the 
aphis because it gives out a sweet substance called "honey 
dew," upon which the ants feed. The presence of many 
ants in the corn-field, especially ant-holes in the hill, is 
a sign of the root aphis. 

The worst damage by the aphis is done while the corn 
is very young. The lice sometimes destroy the roots even 
before the plant comes up. The effect of their work on the 
corn roots causes the plant to turn yellow and take on a 
sickly appearance. If they are very severe in their attack, 
the tips of the leaves become purplish, and the stem reddish 
in color. The yield of the crop is greatly reduced, and its 
ripening delayed. 

Rotation of crops is one of the surest remedies against 
this pest. Harrounng the field before the corn comes up, or 
while it is small, interferes with the work of the ants, and 
hence checks the ravages of the aphis. Keeping the fields 
clean of weeds is also necessary, since the lice thrive on 
the roots of such plants as smartweed and foxtail. 

Cutworms. — Cutworms do little damage except on 
sod land which has been in meadow or pasture for a num- 
ber of years. They are a grayish-brown color, and grow 
to an inch or more in length. Cutworms work at night, 
cutting the young stalk of corn off just at the surface of 
the ground. 

One remedy for cutworms is the fall plowing of sod. 
thus exposing the insects to the freezing of winter. This 
will greatly reduce their number. A shorter rotation of 
crops, leaving the field in sod but one or two years, will also 
tend to destroy the cutworms. 

Wireworms. — Wireworms also make their home in 
sod, and hence are worst in newly broken ground. They 



CORN CULTURE 13 

are the larvae of the click-beetle, whose eggs are laid in 
meadows and pastures in the fall. They hatch out as small 
reddish-brown worms in the early spring. The worms at- 
tack the sprouting kernel, and also bore holes through 
the young plant. Fall plowing and rotation of crops are 
the best remedies against the wireworm. 

The com ear worm. — The worm is usually found 
working in the tips of corn ears. It attacks not only corn, 
but cotton and many other plants. 

The corn ear worm lives through the winter in the 
pupa stage, and comes out in the spring as a moth. There 
are several broods each season, but only the last does any 
great damage to the corn. The harm done by the ear 
worm is not great, except to sweet corn intended for can- 
ning. There is no certain remedy known, though fall 
plowing is thought to reduce their number. 

Smut. — The most common disease affecting corn is 
smut. The smut masses seen on growing corn are pro- 
duced by a small parasitic plant which lives on the juices 
of the com plant. Smut spores, corresponding to seeds, 
live over winter in the soil, or may be distributed in 
manure spread on the field, or may even be blown 'consid- 
erable distances from other fields. 

The slimy black masses of smut are found on the 
stalk, leaves, tassel, or ear. Since smut must live off 
the strength of its host, it is evident that the corn plant 
is weakened and the yield reduced by the presence of this 
disease. There is no effective remedy for corn smut, though 
the burning of smut balls, keeping it from the manure used 
on the field, and the rotation of crops all tend to control it. 

Topics for Investigation 
1, The corn-root worm of the North can be found at 



14 AGRICULTURE 

work only from late June to early August. During late 
August and September the worm is found onl- in the beetle 
stage. Go into a corn-field and secure several of these 
beetles. They are green, and about twice the size of a pin- 
head. Learn to recognize the insect at sight. 

2. If possible secure a number of the pupse of the corn- 
root worm. About the middle of August they can be found 
in great numbers around the roots of corn in a field where 
the worms have been at work. Keep the pupae in warm 
moist soil in a box covered with netting or glass and watch 
for the beetles to come out. 

3. Find hills of corn which have suffered from the 
corn-root worm. How do you discover where they have' 
been at work? Does the hill pull up easily as compared 
with a good hill? What is the condition of the ear? 

4. Observe several fields that have been in corn for a 
number of years in succession. Do they show signs of the 
root worm? Compare with fields on which a rotation of 
crops has been grown. 

5. Secure several ears of corn in which the ear worm 
has been working. How does the worm proceed in its 
attack? Make a study of the worm, and become able to 
identify it at sight. Would you want to eat canned sweet 
corn from a field which had suffered from these worms ? 

6. Secure samples of corn smut affecting (1) the ear, 
(2) the tassel, (3) the stem, (4) the leaves. Does the 
stalk look healthy? Is the ear good? After the smut ball 
is dry, note the fine powder which flies from it. This is 
the spores which reproduce the plant for next year. 

7. If possible, secure samples of the corn-root aphis, 
the cutworm and the wireworm. Learn to identify all these 
accurately and quickly. 

8. Other such enemies to be noted are : the corn moth 
or caterpillar, the stalk borer, the white grub and the corn 
bill bug. If possible, secure specimens of these, learn to 
identify them, tell how they damage the crop and how to 
exterminate them. 

5. Saving the Seed 

The first care if we would secure a good stand of corn 
is the seed. We must have seed that will grow and show 




Gathering seed before it freezes. 




The difference between good seed and poor seed. Each picture 
shows the yield from one acre in adjoining fields. Upper pic- 
ture, poor seed: yield, 22.8 bushels; marketable, 73.9%; nub- 
bins, 26.1%; seed, none. Lower picture, good seed: yield, 66.5 
bushels; marketable, S6.7% ; nubbins. 6.3%; seed, 79o. 



16 AGRICULTURE 

strong vitality. Most of the poor stands which we discov- 
ered in the fields we have just been studying no doubt 
came from seed that either failed to germinate, or else 
threw out plants so weak that they were unable to live 
through the cold damp weather of early spring. 

The loss from poor seed. — The loss from the planting 
of poor seed is enormous. There are- more than one hun- 
dred million acres of corn planted every year in the United 
States. This requires some sixteen million bushels of seed. 
But of these sixteen million bushels, it has been estimated 
by government experts that three million bushels fail to 
grow or produce barren stalks. Think of planting three 
million bushels of worthless seed corn each year! 

Let us see what this great waste means. The average 
yield of corn to the acre in the United States is slightly 
under thirty bushels, or only one small ear to the 
hill. For, counting 3,556 hills to the acre, one ten-ounce 
ear to the hill would yield almost thirty-two bushels to the 
acre ; and an ear weighing only ten ounces is little more 
than a nubbin. Our farmers are therefore averaging but 
one small ear to the hill in all their corn-fields. If they 
should increase the stand and improve the corn so that 
from each hill they get two medium-sized ears, each weigh- 
ing twelve and one-half ounces, the yield will be eighty 
bushels to the acre instead of thirty bushels. Will it not 
pay to select good seed? 

When seed corn shouM be gathered. — There is no 
more important work on the farm than the selection and 
care of seed corn for the next crop. Freezing before it 
is fully dry almost always injures the seed so that it either 
will fail to sprout, or else will produce a weak plant. Seed 
corn should therefore be gathered as early in tbe fall as it 
is well ripened. The time for saving seed in the "com 
belt" is from September twentieth to October tenth. 




Illustration of the yield of corn per acre, allowing a single stalk 
for each hill of 31/2 feet. (A) 28.8 bushels; (B) 30 bushels; 
(C) 40 bushels; (D) 45 bushels; (E) 50 bushels. 




Stringing seed corn,— the tirst step. The second step. The 
string completed. 



18 AGRICULTURE 

How to gather seed corn. — Securing good seed re- 
quires that seed corn shall be gathered from the field be- 
fore the general crop is harvested. The proper way to se- 
lect seed corn is to pass through the best parts of the field, 
row by row, with a sack slung over the shoulder, examin- 
ing each promising-looking ear from a good stalk and full 
hill, and taking the ear if it proves acceptable. This looks 
like a good deal of work, but when it is remembered that 
twelve to fifteen ears will plant an acre, and that the dif- 
ference between a yield of thirty bushels or of sixty bush- 
els to the acre may result from having good seed, it is well 
worth the time. From three to five bushels a day may be 
selected in this way — enough to plant from twenty-five 
to forty acres of next season's crop. 

The right kind of seed hill. — In selecting ears for 
seed it is important to take into account all the surround- 
ings of the plant. It is plain that ears grown on stalks 
which stand but one in a hill, or next to missing hills, have 
a better chance to grow large than those from full hills. 
A large ear grown under such favorable conditions might 
not produce so well as somewhat smaller ears grown un- 
der less favorable conditions. We want to be sure that the 
ear is good size because of something in the nature of the 
ear itself, rather than from what has happened to it while 
growing. Mature good ears from hills having three stalks 
are desirable, for this condition promises a good yield. The 
stalk should be sturdy, not too tall, and have plenty of 
broaa full leaves. 

Curing the seed. — Caring for the seed after it is picked 
is as important as its selection. The great thing in caring 
for seed corn just picked from the field is to give it a 
chance to dry thoroughly. To do this, it must be where it 
can get plenty of circulating air. The ears should not 
touch one another, for then they will not dry evenly. Seed 




Seed corn Lung up to dry. 




Another method of drying seed corn. 



20 AGRICULTURE 

corn should therefore never be stacked in piles or thrown 
into a crib after it is gathered, but should be hung up in 
some open place sheltered from the direct sun, if the weather 
is still hot, and from all rain or other forms of moisture. 

One of the simplest and best ways to hang seed corn 
is by stringing it. By this method each string con- 
tains a dozen ears — almost enough to plant an acre. To 
hang corn in this way, cut a string of binding twine twelve 
feet long, and tie the ends together, thus forming a loop. 
One person should operate the string, and another handle 
the ears. Place the first ear in the strings, and pass one 
end of the loop through the other end, tightening down to 
the ear. Place the next ear in the same way, and keep on 
imtil the string has all been taken up. Hang the stringer 
of ears up in a uniformly dry place and it will need no 
more attention until time comes for testing the seed. This 
plan should be followed after each day's picking, not even 
allowing the corn to lie over night before being hung to dry. 

Another plan of drying out seed corn is to lay the ears 
side by side on shelves, where there is free circulation of 
air, and where mice and rats can not reach the corn. Where 
this plan is followed, the shelves should be made of slats, 
and not of solid boards, so as to allow the air to get to 
all parts of the ear. 

Hanging the ears by tying a part of the husks works 
well, but takes more time, and also takes up more room 
than to use the twine loop for hanging a dozen ears in one 
string. Still another method is to drive ten-penny finishing 
nails four inches apart in a post, sticking the butt of the 
ear on the nail. v.j^-^ 

6. Types of Corn 

There are altogether seven different types of corn. 
These are: (1) pod corn, (2) soft corn, (3) sweet corn, (4) 



CORN CULTURE 21 

pop-corn, (5) Kafir corn, (6) flint corn, and (7) dent 
corn. 

Pod corn. — Most of those who will study this book 
have never seen pod corn grown. It has a thin husk around 
each separate kernel. This type of corn is of interest chiefly 
because it is thought to be the oldest type, from which all 
other types have developed. The chaff or scale at the base 
of the kernels of our common varieties is probably a rem- 
nant of the kernel husk of the old pod corn. Pod corn will 
grow in almost any temperate region. 

Soft corn. — Soft corn, like pod corn, is not grown as a 
staple crop in the United States. This is the Mondamin of 
the American Indians, and was favored by them because it 
was very easily ground. Its softness is caused by the fact 
that its endosperm is all of soft white starch, wholly lacking 
the horny starch of the other types. Little of this type is 
grown except in the South. 

Sweet com. — Sweet corn is widely grown for human 
food. It is used green as "roasting-ears," and is canned 
while green and kept in this state for almost any length of 
time. Sweet com does not produce so large a yield as 
some other kinds, and hence is not grown for feeding stock. 
It is grown throughout the corn territory. 

Pop-corn. — Pop-corn is distinguished for the hardness 
of its kernel. It is just the opposite of soft corn, and has 
an endosperm nearly all of hard horny starch. When the 
kernels are heated and the moisture in them expands, an 
explosion occurs which we call popping. Pop-corn can be 
raised in all parts of the corn region. 

Kafir corn. — Botanically Kafir is not really a member 
of the corn family, but belongs to the sorghums. For 
agricultural purposes, however, Kafir may be considered 
a type of corn. Its medium-sized seeds grow in a cylin- 
drical or oblong head instead of on an ear. Kafir is grown 



22 AGRICULTURE 

in the semi-arid regions of the Southwest. It is a good 
substitute for corn in the ration of all farm animals. 

Flint corn. — Flint corn is the prevailing type yet 
raised in New England and in New York, It is to be rec- 
ognized by the long slender ear, and by the- hard flinty ker- 
nel, which contains a large amount of horny starch. Flint 
corn does not require so long a season as dent corn, and 
hence is preferred in northern regions where there is dan- 
ger of the crop being caught by the frost before it is ripe. 
As earlier varieties of dent, corn are being developed, they 
are displacing flint corn in many regions. 

Dent corn. — This is the principal corn raised in the 
great corn producing regions of the United States. In 
fact it supplies the greater part of the world's com crop. 
It is called dent corn because the soft starch of the crown 
shrinks slightly in ripening, thus causing a depression in 
the top of the kernel. It is the type grown almost ex- 
clusively for feeding stock, and all the commercial corn 
products, such as glucose, starch, sirup, etc., are made 
from it. Dent corn has two varieties : ( 1 ) single ear, or 
One ear to the stalk, as grown in the corn belt; and (2) 
prolific, or many ears to the stalk, as grown in the South. 

Types and varieties. — Each different type of corn may 
have many zvrieties. As a matter of fact, however, the 
types that are most grown have the largest number of vari- 
eties, or strains. Varieties of corn are produced in three 
different ways: (1) by selecting some exceptional or pe- 
culiar ear, and using it for seed, picking out for seed each 
year the ears most nearly like the original parent ear until 
the variety is established; (2) by cross breeding; and (3) 
by selecting each year for planting the best ears, — the 
earliest ears, the largest ears, the best shaped ears, or ears 
that possess whatever quality is wanted in the new variety. 
If this same quality is selected year after year, the variety 




An illustration of the prolific corn common 
in the southern states. It will grow 2 to 8 
ears of corn on each stalk. It requires a 
subtropical climate, copious rainfall and a 
long season. 




Types of corn. (1) pod corn; (2) three strains of flint corn; 
(3) two strains of sweet corn; (4) two strains of pop-corn; 
C5\ two strains of dent corn. 



24 AGRICULTURE 

will after a time have a tendency to "breed true" ; that is, 
all to be like the ears selected for seed. 

Selecting the best variety. — Different varieties are 
suited for different climates and for different soils. It is 
therefore important in selecting a variety of corn to know 
whether it is adapted to the conditions under which it is 
to be raised. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. How many of the seven different types of corn have 
you ever seen? How many are grown in your region? (Be 
sure to distinguish type from variety.) 

2. Bring to school a sample of as many different types 
as you can find. What three can you easily secure if you 
live in the Middle West? What ones can you secure if you 
live in New England ? If you live in Oklahoma or Alabama ? 

3. Examine these different types for the size of the 
ear ; for the shape ; for the shape of kernel ; for color ; for 
proportion of corn to cob ; for the parts of the kernel. 

4. Is the corn raised on your father's farm a true 
variety, or is it mixed? If true, what is tlfe variety? 

5. How many varieties of corn do you kijow? Join 
with your classmates in making as large a collection of sam- 
ples of different varieties as can be found in the neighbor- 
hood. Comparing these ears for the different qualities by 
which ears are judged, what are the differences you note? 
Which seems to you the best variety? Does it yield best? 
Does it ripen ? Does it have good feeding and selling qual- 
ities? 

7. Raising Seed in a Selection Bed 

The first step necessary in improving corn is to improve 
the seed. Not only must we make sure that the corn se- 
lected for seed will grow, but it must be as nearly perfect 
in every way as possible. For heredity works in plants as 
well as in animals. We select the best stock for breeding ; 
we should do the same in choosing the seed we plant. Good, 
strong, well-formed ears will tend to produce corn of the 



CORN CULTURE 



25 



same kind, while small, irregular, or weak ears will breed 
the characteristics of their kind. 

Choosing the selection bed. — So important is the mat- 
ter of the very best corn for seed, that many farmers are 
now using what is called the selection bed for the raising of 




A sample of corn sliowiug good tip ends. 

seed. The selection bed should be a choice plot of ground 
of from one to three acres, depending on the size of the 
farm. This plot is specially prepared, planted with the 
choicest seed, tested for growth and vitality, and is given 
the best of care. 

The selection bed should be by itself if you want pure 



26 AGRICULTURE 

seed. It may be a part of the general field, if located at 
the south or southwest side, so that the prevailing summer 
winds may carry the pollen to all parts of the plot, and 
even to the remainder of the field. This plot should never 
be placed where it will receive the pollen from some neigh- 
boring field of different variety, of mixed, or poor grade 
corn. 

Care at tasseling time. — At tasseling time the selec- 
tion bed requires special attention. As already explained, 
this is because the tassel, which is the male flower of the 
corn, bears the pollen necessary to fertilize the silk, which 
is the female flower. There is one silk for each kernel. 
The silk has to be fertilized by a single grain of pollen fall- 
ing upon it. If pollen from a different variety of corn fer- 
tilizes the silks, the result is a mixed breed. If the pollen 
comes from weak or faulty stalks, the ears formed are im- 
perfect, or the stalk may remain barren. 

In the selection bed, as in the remainder of the field, 
there will be found weak stalks, barren stalks and suckers, 
all of which may bear tassels, and hence produce pollen. 
But the pollen from these faulty stalks should nq,t be allowed 
to fertilize the ear-bearing stalks. To prevent this, it is 
necessary to go into the selection bed when the first tassels 
begin to appear, and cut out all the faulty stalks, so that 
their pollen may do no damage. This is a very important 
matter in raising good seed, and should never be neg- 
lected. Weak parentage in corn, as in stock, should be pre- 
vented. 

Taking seed from selection bed. — The same care 
should be observed in selecting seed from the selection bed 
as from the general field. Each year the choicest and strong- 
est ears should be used in planting the selection bed. In 
this way, almost any variety of corn can be improved, and 
much larger and better vields obtained. 



CORN CULTURE 27 

Home-grown seed the best. — As a rule, home-grown 
seed is best, provided it is carefully selected, and kept 
improving from year to year. It takes corn shipped in from 
another region several years to adapt itself to the new condi- 
tions so that it will do as well as in its home place. Corn 
does not "run out," as many farmers believe, but is run out 
by farmers who are careless in the selection of seed. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Has your father ever used the selection bed, or "seed 
patch" for the raising of his seed corn ? How many of the 
farmers in your neighborhood so use it? 

2. Good seed corn from a favorite variety sells at from 
two dollars to as much as ten dollars a bushel. Sup- 
pose that you should plant a selection bed of two acres, 
and secure sixty bushels per acre, one-third of which is suit- 
able for seed. If cribbed corn is worth fifty cents a bushel, 
and seed corn three dollars, what is the return from the 
two acres? How much greater is the return than if the 
corn had all been sold for feed? All corn club boys and 
ambitious farmers should raise seed corn of the improved 
strains. 

3. Talk with your father about planting a seed club 
acre next year, and allowing you to manage it, select the 
seed, and care for the patch at tasseling time. About how 
manv ears would be required to plant a three-acre bed? Have 
you satisfactory seed from which to select for the bed, or 
would you have to secure seed from a neighbor? What 
variety does your father favor ? What are the other varieties 
that might be considered ? 

8. Corn Judging with Score-Card 

What qualities, together, make a good ear of corn ? We 
are now ready for a somewhat more careful study of the 
ear to answer this question. For this purpose we shah 
judge a sample of ten ears by the use of the score-card. 
The score-card requires that we grade the ear on each of 




A three-stalk bill with six good ears of Silver King, on an Iowa 
farm. 




Boys and girls bringing eorn to school lor judging and testing 
in a Cook County rural school. 



CORN CULTURE 29 

its different qualities, and then sum these markings all 
together for the final "standing" or value of the ear. 

This method of judging corn is much more accurate 
and scientific than estimating the value of an ear in an off- 
hand way. It is the method used by most of the corn 
experts. 

All ears to be judged as if for seed. — No matter for 
what purpose corn is to be used, it is always best to judge 
the ears as if they were intended for seed. This is because 
the ear that is best for seed is also best for every other pur- 
pose. The ear which would show best in an agricultural 
exhibit, the one which would be best for yield, or feeding, 
or any other use is the one which grades highest as a seed 
ear. 

Preparing the samples for judging. — ^To supply corn 
for judging with the score-card, each pupil will bring from 
home the best ten ears of corn he can find either in the 
field or the crib. There should be altogether as many as from 
five to ten sets of ten ears each. Each ear must be labeled 
or numbered so as to show ( 1 ) what set it belongs to, and 
(2) its number in the set. For this purpose prepare pieces 
of tough cardboard one-half inch square. For the first set 
of ten, label the ears Al, A2, A3 and so on. For the next 
set, label the ears Bl, B2, B3, etc. Do this way for each 
of the different sets, so that any ear can be placed in the 
set where it belongs. The labels can be tied to the ears, 
or can be attached to the butts by pushing a small nail 
through the card and into the butt of the ear. The sets 
can now be placed together on a table without danger of get- 
ting them mixed. 

The four qualities on which the ear is judged. — The 
score-card is arranged to judge the corn on four different 
qualities, each quality, if perfect, being counted as twenty- 



30 AGRICULTURE 

five points, one hundred points therefore being a perfect 
score. 

The first great question about an ear is : Will it yield 
well ; has it a good constitution, so that it will do well even 
under unfavorable conditions ? The second question is : Will 
it ripen, and not get caught by the frost and so produce a 
crop of soft corn ? The third question is : Will it grow, is it 
of good vitality, so that it will give a good stand, and strong 
plants ? The fourth question is : Does it show improvement; 
that is, is it a clear type that will breed true, and not show 
mixed breeds ? 

Let us study these four points a little more in detail, and 
then we shall be ready to score our samples according to 
the points of the score-card, (Sample score-cards should 
be secured for the class from the state agricultural college 
or the United States Department of Agriculture.) 

Will the ear yield? — The chief factors in the yield are 
the size of ear, depth of kernel, filling at tip and butt, and 
reasonably close set rows. The size of the ear must be 
adapted to the locality. Much larger ears can be raised in 
Missouri, for example, than in Minnesota, because of the 
difference in length of season. 

Will the ear ripen? — In general, ears that have a large 
circumference are slower in ripening than slender ears. 
Long kernels also indicate late maturity, as do large, coarse, 
pithy cobs. Such characteristics are therefore not adapted 
to regions having short seasons. 

Will the ear grow? — In an ear of good vitality the 
grain is of a bright and cheerful appearance, and the germ 
and embryo of clear whitish color, somewhat shiny from 
the oil it contains. -And discoloring or signs of molding 
indicate lack of vitality. 

Dc:>es the corn show iniprovcn-ient ? — In corn that is 
improving instead of running out, the color is clear and 



CORN CULTURE ' 31 

free from mixture, true to the variety represented. Both 
ears and kernels should be constant in shape, and conform 
to the variety type. 

How to judge with the score-card. — Place your ten 
ear samples on the table with the butts toward you. Begin 
with ear number 1, and study each ear with great care, point 
by point, taking time to decide each grade mark. Put 
these down in the proper place on the score-card. Do not 
be afraid to mark off for defects. It takes a good ear to 
score ninety points when carefully graded. 

Finally, add together the marks for each ear given 
under each of the four grade points, and place the sum in 
the proper place in the summary on the score-card. Add 
these results for each ear. This will give you the final 
score for each ear of the set. 

Comparing scores. — After thus completing your own 
sample of ten ears, exchange with one of your classmates, 
and score his sample, while he at the same time scores 
yours. Do this as carefully as the first set, without refer- 
ring to the grading given by the other person. When both 
have finished, compare the scores, and discuss the differ- 
ences in the markings. It is not to be expected that the 
scoring will agree in all particulars, but where there are 
wide differences, the reasons for each score given should 
be carefully gone over to correct any false judgment. 

9. Testing the Seed Corn 

No seed corn should ever be planted that has not been 
tested ear by ear to see whether it will germinate, and pro- 
duce a strong growth. For, even if the seed is carefully 
selected and cared for, there are always some ears that will 
fail to grow, or else produce plants so weak as to be bar- 
ren or raise but worthless nubbins. 

4 










The small ear grows in extreme northern portion of Minne- 
sota and the larger ear in central and southern Minnesota. 
The two illustrate the effect of climate and the influence length 
of season has on corn production. 




A good ear and a poor ear of corn. 



CORN CULTURE 33 

Since it takes but a dozen or fifteen ears to plant an 
acre, and since an acre of average ground should yield at 
least sixty bushels, each ear of seed represents from four 
to five bushels of crop. The farmer's time can be spent 
in no more profitable v^ay than in making sure that every 
ear of seed corn planted is sure to grow. The testing 
should be done late in the winter, or in the early spring 
before the farm work opens. 

Preparing for testing. — Testing the seed corn costs 
practically nothing but a little time, care and attention. 
For, while there are several excellent seed-corn testers on 
the market, none is superior to one that can easily be 
made at home. 

The sawdust germination box may be prepared as fol- 
lows : Construct a box thirty inches square and four inches 
deep. Put some sawdust in a bag and soak it in warm 
wat6r until it is well saturated. Fill the box half full of 
the sawdust, packing it well. Take a piece of good white 
cloth and rule it off in two-and-one-half-inch squares, mak- 
ing one hundred squares in all, and numbering them, from 
one to one hundred. Place the cloth on the sawdust so 
that there will be a margin of at least two inches between 
the sides of the box and the squares. Tack cloth to the 
edges of the box. 

Now take one hundred ears of the corn to be tested and 
lay them out in a row on a table or planks. Drive a nail into 
the table every tenth ear, separating the entire lot into 
ten groups of ten ears each. Number the ears from one to 
one hundred to correspond with the squares in the tester. 
This may be done by numbering the places on the edge of 
the table if care is taken not to change places Ivith the ears. 

Making the test. — Remove one kernel from "near the 
butt, one from near the middle, and one from near the tip 
of the ear ; turn the ear over and remove three kernels from 



34 AGRICULTURE 

corresponding positions on the other side of the ear. These 
six kernels are to be placed, germ side up and tips all toward 
one side of the box, in the squares over the sawdust, those 
from ear No. 1 in square No. 1, and so on, until six ker- 
nels have been taken from each of the one hundred ears and 
placed in the tester. 

After the kernels are all in position, thus filling the one 
hundred squares, lay a piece of cloth over them, taking care 
not to disturb their positions. Sprinkle this cloth well with 
warm water. Now lay over this another cloth about twice 
the size of the box. Fill in on top about two inches of 
damp sawdust, packing it down very firmly. Then fold the 
edges of the cloth over the sawdust, covering it so that 
it will not dry out. 

The germination box is now ready to set away for the 
kernels to sprout. The box should be kept in a fairly warm 
place, and must not be allowed to freeze. The kernels 
should be allowed from six to eight days for sprouting, 
depending on the temperature. It is not enough that the 
germination has merely started ; it must be allowed to go 
on for some days to show whether the new plant has good 
vitality. 

The number of germination boxes required will depend 
on the amount of seed to be tested. Several can be used 
at the same time, stacking one on top of another as they 
are filled. The ears must, of course, remain in their orig- 
inal positions on the tables until the results of the test are 
determined. 

Reading the test. — At the end of the germination 
period the cover must be removed without disturbing the 
kernels. This can be done by carefully rolling up the top 
pad of sawdust in its cloth. The sprouts will be some 
two inches long, and may in some cases have grown through 
the first cloth covering. 




Scbool testing seed corn in sawdust germination boxes. 




Putting tlie rag dolls into a bucket, wbicb is then wrapped in 
old newspapers and kept in a safe place until the kernels of 
corn have sii routed. 



36 AGRICULTURE 

It is easy now to tell which are the good and which 
are the bad seed ears. An ear should be rejected if even 
one of the six kernels failed to sprout. For a loss of one 
out of six means sixteen and two-thirds per cent, of the 
crop gone if all ears were of this kind. 

Ears whose six kernels may all sprout, but which start 
weakly, should also be thrown out. For it is these weak 
plants that later turn out to be barren, or prove an easy 
prey to dry weather or some insect enemy. If only those 
ears are planted whose six kernels all produce strong vig- 
orous sprouts in the germination box, the greatest obstacle 
in the way of a perfect stand will have been removed. 

The "rag-doll" tester. — A very simple and effective 
tester is made of a strip of cloth and is called the "rag doll." 
To make this form of tester, use nine-inch strips of muslin 
five feet long. Draw a pencil line lengthwise down the 
middle of the strip, and draw cross lines every three inches, 
leaving about fifteen inches at each end of the strip with no 
lines. Number the spaces. Wet the cloth thoroughly, and 
place the kernels in the spaces as in the sawdust tester. 
Roll the strip up from either end, and tie a string around 
the roll. Now stand the roll, with the tips of the kernels 
down, in a bucket of tepid water for several hours. Place 
the roll in a box or under an inverted bucket so that the 
moisture will not dry out. Of course as many of these 
rolls may be used as are required for the amount of corn 
to be tested. 

Commercial testers. — Several forms of commercial 
testers are now available, and most of them are fairly satis- 
factory. There is little need, however, for buying testers 
when they can be so easily made at home, and when the 
home-made testers are so simple and effective. 




Placing the kernels in the "rag-doU" lesler. 



38 AGRICULTURE 

Topics for Investigation 

Let the class join in making a germination box for the 
school as described in the text. Sawdust may be obtained 
from wood-piles, icehouses, or meat markets. 

1. Each pupil will bring to school enough ears of seed 
corn so that the class will have one hundred ears for testing. 

2. Arrange the ears as directed, numbering them from 
one to one hundred. Take six kernels from each ear and 
place them in the box. Make arrangements to keep the box 
reasonably warm. The "rag-doll" tester may be used by 
some of the class. Compare results from the two forms of 
tester. 

3. At the end of a week uncover the box and read the 
test. How many ears had one kernel that did not grow? 
Two kernels? Three kernels? Four kernels? Five ker- 
nels? Six kernels? 

4. What would have been the percentage of stand if 
all the ears had been planted, and the germination in the 
field been equal to that of the box? It is estimated that to 
hire the labor for testing will cost about sixteen cents an 
acre. Would this pay? Compare this report with your 
record from counting stand on page six. 

5. How many ears will grow, but produce plants so 
weak that they will probably be barren or produce nubbins ? 
How many of the one hundred ears should be discarded as 
seed ? 

6. Tell your father about this test, and join with him 
in testing the home seed for the next crop. 

10. Preparing Seed Corn for the Planter 

After testing the seed, the next step is to grade it for 
the planter. This means to divide the seed corn into lots 
according to the size of the kernels. It is imposs!l)le to 
secure a regular drop \\'ith the planter unless the kernels 
are of fairly uniform size. And no matter how good the 
seed, if one hill receives two kernels and the next four or 
five, the stand will be irregular and the crop reduced. 



CORN CULTURE 39 

Grading seed corn. — The grading of seed corn can be 
done in the winter when general farm work is slack. It 
may well follow immediately after the testing, or even be 
carried on in connection with it. 

The first step in grading is to shell off the butts and 
tips by hand. The end kernels are always more or less 




The blotter seed tester. Au excellent type for school use. 

irregular, and differ in size from the remainder of the ear. 
They should never be planted. 

The ears are then to be shelled, one at a time, and the 
kernels inspected to determine whether they are large or 
small; if the variation is great, it will be well to have also 
a medium grade. As each ear is shelled, the seed is put 
into its proper grade ; when the shelling is completed, the 
supply of seed will therefore be in either two or three lots, 
based on the size of the kernels. All ears with exceptionally 



40 



AGRICULTURE 



large or exceptionally small kernels should be rejected, as 
they will fit neither grade. 

Hand picking the seed. — But even after the most care- 
ful grading by ears, there will still be a surprisingly large 
number of irregular, broken, diseased, or imperfect kcr- 




C 







Smbz-yo 



Experiments sliowiug results of planting corn at different 
depths. DiagratD of kernel of corn. 

nels. To remove these, the corn should be spread out on a 
table, a few handfuls at a time, and all the imperfect ker- 
nels thrown out. Running the seed through a "sorter" 
saves time in the hand picking. The seed-corn sorter con- 
sists of a sieve with large oblong meshes. 

Caring for the shelled seed. — After the seed has been 
tested and graded it must be given good care to prevent 



CORN CULTURE 41 

it from becoming damp and molding, or getting too dry 
as from artificial heat. It should be placed in sacks hold- 
ing not more than half a bushel each, and hung in a pro- 
tected place, such as an attic. The sacks should be labeled 
to show the grade that each contains. 

Testing the planter. — Before planting time, the 
planter should be carefully tested for each grade of seed, 
and the right size of plates determined. This is done by 
placing a quantity of each grade of seed in the planter 
boxes in succession, throwing the drop by hand, and keep- 
ing accurate count of the number of kernels dropped each 
time for at least a hundred hills. 

In well graded seed it should be possible to secure a 
drop of three kernels more than seventy-five per cent, of the 
time. Whether whatever variation there is should be chiefl}' 
in the direction of two, or of four, kernels will depend on 
the richness of the soil. If the seed has been carefully 
tested, the effort should be to plant three kernels to the 
hill in just as many cases as possible. 

Topics for Investigation 

Let each member of the class bring to school a number 
of ears of corn suitable for seed so that the class will 
together have a lot of at least fifty ears. 

1. Shell off the butts and tips, comparing the size of 
the kernels. Will the shape of the kernel have anything to 
do with the number the planter will drop to the hill ? 

2. Shell all the ears, one at a time, dividing the kernels 
into three lots according to size. How many ears go into 
each grade? Are there any ears with kernels too large or 
too small for either grade? 

3. Now let each pupil take a pint of shelled corn from 
each of the three grades and hand pick it. How many 
kernels are very small, irregular, or chaffy? How many 
broken? How many moldy or black at the tip? How 
many have you rejected from each lot? Count the good 




t urn roots at time for last plowing;. The stalks are about 5 
leet high aud stand yi/. feet aijurt. Note liow all the inter- 
vening space is tilled with roots. 



COr.N CULTURE 43 

kernels in each lot and figure the percentage rejected 
through hand picking. 

4. If there is a corn planter near at hand, draw it to 
the school and test it for the drop on each of the different 
grades of seed, keeping count for at least one hundred hills 
on each side of the planter. What percentage of the time 
are you able to secure a drop of three kernels? 

5. Mix together a few pints of the three grades in the 
proportion they bear in the whole amount shelled. Test 
the planter with this mixture, keeping track of the drop for 
one hundred hills on each side of the planter. What do you 
conclude as to the wisdom of grading seed corn for the 
planter ? 

11. The Seed Bed and Planting 

The roots of growing corn require, besides the nutrients 
of the soil, heat, air and moisture. Let any of these fall 
short, and the crop is injured. Loose soil absorbs both 
moisture and air better than hard soil. Loose soil also holds 
its moisture better than hard soil, since it does not favor 
such rapid evaporation. And, since evaporation is always 
accompanied by a loss of heat, hard soil loses heat more 
rapidly at night or during cold spells. The supply of 
heat, air and moisture therefore depends on having the 
soil loose and finely pulverized. 

How corn roots grow. — Corn roots grow by pushing 
the root tip out through the soil, drawing food from the 
tiny particles of earth, and drinking the film of water that 
surrounds each particle of soil. If the ground is hard or 
soggy, the root tips can not easily push through it, nor 
can they get enough air. If it is coarse and full of clods, 
the roots can not reach across the open places between the 
clods. In soil of this character roots also suffer from lack 
of moisture, for they must be packed about by fine par- 
ticles in order to drink in the water. Even if the soil be 
so wet as to have water standing around the roots, they 



44 AGRICULTURE 

can not use water in this form. Indeed, water standing 
around the roots will injure them by keeping them too 
cold, and by shutting the air from them. Not until water 
is absorbed by millions of minute particles of fine soil is it 
ready for plant roots to drink. 

Preparing the seed bed. — Ground is plowed in order 
to loosen it. Fall plowing is usually best for corn. Fall 
plowed ground presents a rough surface which holds the 
snow better, and it also takes in and retains a larger supply 
of moisture. Fall plowing also has plenty of time to settle, 
so that it is in better condition for the crop than spring 
plowing, and allows earlier planting. Spring plowed 
ground, not having much time to settle, dries out more 
easily than ground plowed in the fall. Especially should 
sod land be plowed in the fall, so that the sod may have 
a chance to rot and settle down on the subsoil. There 
is also less danger from cutworms in fall plowed, sod land. 
Stubble ground should usually be plowed early, and sod 
late in the fall. 

Ground should not be plowed while it is wet, for most 
soils, if turned while wet, have a tendency to bake and form 
into clods that are hard to pulverize. Fall plowed ground 
should not be harrowed until spring, but should be disked 
or harrowed as soon as oats seeding is done. This will kill 
young weeds, and save the moisture from drying out. 
Spring plowing should usually be harrowed within a few 
hours after it is turned, for it is then much more easily 
pulverized than after it has dried. In very fine and mellow 
soil this may not be necessary, but many farmers harrow 
what they have plowed at the close of each half-day. 

Spring plowing should be disked and harrowed enough 
to press the loosened soil down on the furrow bottom, so 
that it will make good connection with the subsoil. This 
will do much to prevent drying out. In fact, it is impos- 




A well prepareil i-eecl bed. 








A poorly prepared seed bed. 



46 AGRICULTURE 

sible to work spring plowing too much in this waj'. Much 
harrowing packs the soil thoroughly, makes a loose bed for 
the seed, and provides a fine mulch to prevent loss of 
moisture through evaporation. Thorough disking or har- 
rowing of fall i)lowing is necessary to loosen the soil and 
prepare the bed for the seed. 

Killing the weeds. — It is well to harrow just before 
planting, as this kills the sprouting weeds, and allows the 
corn to get started ahead of them. By far the easiest time 
to kill weeds is when they are just starting, and a few 
harrowings early in the season will save much trouble with 
weeds later on. From two to four harrowings, or their 
equivalent in disking, will usually pay on average fields. 

Time for planting. — Corn should be planted as early 
in the spring as the ground can be made ready and the 
soil is warm enough. The average date of planting varies 
from the eleventh of INIarch in Florida to the twenty-sixth of 
May in Maine. The first two weeks of May are the corn- 
planting time in the states of the great middle region of 
the United States. The average air temperature at which 
corn is planted is about fifty-five degrees. The Indians had 
a rule that corn should be planted whep the leaves of the 
maples were as large as squirrels' ears. 

Depth of planting. — A mistake is often made in plant- 
ing corn too deep. Some say that by planting deep they 
give the roots a deep setting. This, however, is not the 
case. For, no matter how deep the seed is planted, the 
roots adapt themselves to conditions. If the planting is 
too deep, the permanent roots finally start out nearer the 
surface, and time has been lost and energy wasted in com- 
pelling the plant to readjust itself. 

Corn should usually not be planted more than one and 
a half inches deep, and frequently not more than an inch. 
Especially in cold weather or in wet soils, should the plant- 



CORN CULTURE 47 

ing be shallow. Careful experiments have been made by 
the agricultural colleges of many states as to the best depth 
for planting corn, and they have found that almost uni- 
versally the shallow planting is best. The only exception is 
for a very dry soil, or a dry season. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Have you seen corn planted in a seed bed that was 
hard and full of clods ? Did the corn do well ? Have you 
seen corn with water standing about the roots? How did 
the corn look? What caused this appearance? 

2. What percentage of corn land in your neighborhood 
is plowed in the fall? Why is not more of it plowed in the 
fall? Ask your father about this. Which is the busier 
season, fall or spring? In which season is it necessary 
that the work be done at just such a time? 

3. Have you seen ground plowed when it was wet? 
Did it bake in clods? Do the farmers you know harrow 
their spring plowing the day it is plowed? Have you seen 
weeds get a good start ahead of the corn? How can this 
be prevented? 

4. Have you seen spring plowing planted when the 
soil was so loose that the planter wheels settled several 
inches in the ground? What is the danger in planting a 
seed bed in this condition? What should be done to it? 
Suppose spring plowing has been rained on until it is very 
hard. What is the best way to prepare a seed bed for 
planting? 

5. What is the earliest date of planting in your vicin- 
ity? The average date? The latest safe date for common 
varieties of corn? 

6. Make the following test to discover the best depth 
for planting corn: Put one inch of dirt in the bottom of a 
quart glass jar. On this, near the side, plant a kernel of 
corn, and cover it with an inch of dirt. On this layer plant 
another kernel, and so on until the lower kernel is covered 
with six inches of dirt, and the top with one inch. Place the 
kernels so that one will not be directly above another. Let 
the seeds sprout, and watch the growth for ten days. From 



48 AGRICULTURE 

this experiment what do you conclude is the best depth? 
Ask your father how deep he plants his corn. 

12. Cultiz'ating the Corn 

Why corn needs to be cultivated. — Corn is to be cul- 
tivated after planting for three main purposes: (1) to kill 
the weeds, (2) to admit air to the roots, and (3) to pre- 
serve the moisture of the soil. 

From the time germination begins the growth of the 
plant must be unchecked if a full crop is to be secured. 
When corn has become yellow and spindling from being 
choked by weeds, or from the baking of uncultivated soil 
around it, it is permanently injured and will never fully 
recover. Only the rich green color and sturdy stock of the 
rapidly growing plant give promise of a full yield. 

When to begin cultivation. — Cultivation should begin 
early. Under average conditions, two harrowings should 
be given before the corn comes up. This will keep the soil 
from baking, and keep the weeds down until the plants are 
large enough to cultivate. The time to kill weeds is just as 
they are starting. Let them once get well rooted, and they 
are hard to keep down. The spring tooth weeder is some- 
times used instead of the harrow for early cultivation. It 
is valuable where there are many stones or ruts in the 
field. 

The shovel or disk cultivator should be started as soon 
as the corn is well up, so that the rows can be easily fol- 
lowed. Even if the weeds do not seem to be starting., they 
are surely taking root. Cultivation will also break up the 
crusted soil, and admit air to the growing roots. And this 
must be done or their growth will be checked. 

Methods of cultivation. — Four or five cultivations are 
usually enough after the corn comes up, though this must 
depend on the character of the soil, the weeds and the 



CORN CULTURE 49 

amount of moisture. The present tendency is toward shal- 
low cultivation, though this also must depend on whether 
the soil seems to pack heavily and become hard under- 
neath. If it does, the first should be of some depth. The 
important thing is not to break or injure the growing roots. 
For a broken root always means loss of vitality and food 
to the plant. 

From thirty to sixty days after planting, the roots have 
often spread so far that they meet between the rows, thus 
occupying all the ground. Especially is this true if the 
season has up to this time been rather wet. For in wet ana 
loose soils the roots spread out near the surface, while in 
dry soil they spread less and run deeper into the ground. 

It is evident that deep cultivation after the roots are 
well spread is injurious. The old method of setting the 
shovels deep and "hilling up" the corn the last time through 
is no longer followed in scientific farming. The culti- 
vations should be shallow. Cultivation may continue with 
advantage up to the time the corn is tasseling if care is 
taken not to break the roots. In dry seasons this late cul- 
tivation is a very great advantage, because it keeps a loose 
soil mulch, which does much to prevent evaporation of the 
sub-surface moisture. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Examine three different farmers' corn-fields, and 
see if you can tell whether the last plowing was deep or 
shallow. How can you tell? Did they "hill up"? Are 
the fields weedy? If so, what was the cause? 

2. How many times does your father cultivate his 
corn? At what date does he lay it by? Does haying get 
in the way of late cultivation of the corn? 

3. Suppose that next season proves to be hot and dry. 
How should the corn in your vicinity be cultivated? Sup- 
pose the season should be wet. How, then, should the 
corn be cultivated? 



50 AGRICULTURE 

4. Why does keeping the soil pulverized and loose on 
top prevent loss of moisture? What causes the corn tc 
look yellow and stunted when the ground becomes baked? 

5. Suppose a careless boy covers up five hills out of 
every hundred in plowing a field of forty acres of corn. 
The crop yields thirty-eight bushels to the acre. How much 
would it have yielded if he had covered up none? How 
much did his carelessness cost if corn is worth fifty cents 
a bushel ? 

13. Harvesting and Storing the Corn 

Corn is harvested in three principal ways: (1) it is 
husked from the standing stalks and the ears stored in 
cribs; (2) it is cut while partially green and either shocked 
in the field or stored in a silo; and (3) stock, especially 
hogs, are turned into the field to do the harvesting for them- 
selves. 

Field husking. — By far the greater part of the corn 
produced, especially in the great corn belt, is husked in 
the field from the standing stalks. This is the method 
used when corn is raised for the grain, and the fodder, or 
stover, is a secondary consideration. 

Field husking is the cheapest and quickest way of secur- 
ing the grain. In good corn, from sixty to more than one 
hundred bushels a day can be gathered by one man with a 
team, at a cost of from three to four cents a bushel. ]\Ia- 
chines for husking from the standing stalks are also in use 
on many large farms. Corn can be picked by a husking 
machine at the rate of from seven to eight acres a day, and, 
where the acreage is large, at a cost per bushel slightly less 
than for hand picking. No machine yet invented does the 
husking as satisfactorily as by hand. The machine misses 
some ears, breaks others, shells off more or less corn, and 
pulls up or breaks many stalks. The corn-picking machine 
is not always a complete success. 




Yield from one acre raised by a Douglas County, Illinois, corn 
club boy, 130 bushels; three loads for market, one load for seed. 











^-t^T.. 


. ..-', 


h- .Jta 


^^s 




*^' ^ v.^B 


B^ 


V-s-V 


m 


^^^Si^ta 


WmmtLj^^ "fe' ji5h 




m 


L'"^-; 



:.>^A 



^^^m^-fj- ^' 






^' 



Corn harvester ut work. 



52 AGRICULTURE 

One advantage of field husking is that the harvesting 
can be delayed until the fall rush with other crops is over. 
The ears should be well cured before being cribbed, or 
there is danger of molding. This is especially true if 
the fall and winter should happen to be warm and moist. 

Corn should be stored in well protected cribs. The 
use of rail or other forms of uncovered cribs is a source 
of great loss. The grain may seem to keep well during 
the winter in the open crib, but when shelled and sold to 
the elevators in the spring it often heats and spoils. This 
tends to reduce the price of corn, and has caused a preju- 
dice in European countries against American corn as a 
food. No rain or snow should reach the corn after it is 
cribbed, for it is sure to injure the quality of the grain. 

Harvesting by cutting. — In average corn the ear sup- 
plies about sixty-four per cent, of the food value and the 
plant thirty-six per cent. Thus the stover in a field is worth 
for feeding purposes more than half as much as the grain. 
If the corn is cut just as it is becoming well glazed the 
stover is worth from five to ten dollars a ton. 

The time for cutting corn depends on the use to which 
it is to be put. If the corn is grown chiefly for the grain, 
it should not be cut until the kernels are well dented and 
the husks partially dry. The stover will still make good 
feed if it is properly cared for. After a heavy frost, or 
after most of the leaves have become brown, the stover 
will not pay for the expense of cutting and feeding. Cut- 
ting while the corn is in the roasting-ear stage makes a 
more palatable stover, but the feeding value of the crop 
is considerably less than if cut in the glazing stage. 

The corn binder. — The corn binder is widely used in 
northern states. It works successfully in corn from five to 
nine feet high. In regions where the stalks grow from ten 



CORN CULTURE 53 

to twelve feet in height, the binder does not meet with favor, 
since it is not yet built to handle corn of this size. 

On account of the expense of owning and operating a 
corn binder, it is doubtful whether it pays to purchase one 
unless at least twenty acres per season are to be cut. From 
seven to eight acres a day can be harvested with the corn 
binder, at a cost of about one dollar and a half an acre for 
cutting and shocking. 

The corn shocker. — The corn shocker cuts the corn 
and forms it into a shock carried on the machine. When 
the shock is completed it is tied by hand, and lifted from 
the machine by a crane and set on the ground. From four 
to five acres per day can be harvested with a shocker at a 
cost of about a dollar and ten cents an acre. 

Shocking the corn. — No matter how the corn is cut, 
it should be shocked so that it will stand erect and keep 
the fodder dry. Fallen and twisted shocks result in the 
loss of millions of dollars worth of stover, and not a small 
amount of grain as well. Shocks should be tied as soon as 
they are made, and then tightened in a week or ten days. 
Binding twine makes a convenient tie. The band should 
be within about two feet of the top, so that the shock may 
turn the rain. 

Fodder should not be left in the shock longer than nec- 
essary to become well cured. It should then be stored in 
ricks or barns. The practise of leaving shocks in the field 
over winter can not be too severely condemned. For the 
rains and wind destroy the most palatable and nutritious 
part of the plant and rob it of a large part of its food 
value. 

The silo. — The silo has come into general use on the 
best managed farms. Although it will preserve any green, 
succulent growth such as clover, sorghum, cabbage, sugar 



54 AGRICULTUR-E 

beets, etc., the silo is employed almost wholly in this coun- 
try for the storing of corn without curing. 

For silage, the corn, when cut, should be ripened enough 
so that it has somewhat glazed, well-dented kernels, and 
the husks and leaves should have begun to die. If cut 
much earlier than this a great proportion of the feeding 
value of the crop will be lost. If cut much later, it will 
not pack well in the silo, nor be so palatable. 

Storing green corn in a silo is like canning fruit. In 
fact, the silo is nothing but a large jar, air tight except at 
the top. When the green silage is put in, it soon begins to 
decay, and thus generates a great deal of heat. This process 
uses up all the air in the silage, producing a large amount 
of carbon dioxide. Finally, the heat and the lack of air stop 
all decay, and the silage will keep for almost any length 
of time. Several inches of the silage on the top is certain 
to spoil, for it has sufficient air to keep up the decay. De- 
cay will also take place where there is any leakage of air 
through the walls of the silo. 

Advantages in use of silo. — There are many advan- 
tages in the use of the silo. Even the harder and coarser 
parts of the stover, because cut when green and shredded 
into small pieces, are eaten. Probably about double the 
feeding value can be taken from an acre of corn by putting 
it into a silo rather than by shocking and feeding it from 
the field. This will allow nearly twice as much stock to 
be kept on a farm by use of the silo. Animals also need 
such a laxative food as silage provides. 

Stock relish silage better than dry fodder, eat more of 
it, and thrive better on it. Cattle prefer it to clover hay, 
and eat it greedily even when fresh from good pasturage. 
Many farmers who make a business of dairying are coming 
to feed silage all through the summer as a supplement to 




Hai'vestiug corn by "lioggiug dowu. 




Well arrauged silus aud barus. 



56 AGRICULTURE 

pasturage. This has been found to pay because of the 
increased supply of milk produced. 

Size of the silo. — The size of the silo must depend on 
the number of the herd to be fed from it. Silage exposed 
to the air decays rapidly, especially in warm weather. In 
order to avoid waste it is necessary to feed from one and 
one-half to two inches daily from the surface of the silage. 
If the herd is small or the silo too great in diameter, this is 
impossible. 

Owing to the closer packing, silage is better in quality 
as the depth increases. It is therefore better to build a 
silo of considerable height rather than low and of greater 
diameter. Moderate-sized silos are built from thirty to 
forty feet deep. Silos are now being constructed with a 
water-tank in the top into which water for house and barn 
use is pumped by a windmill. This gives the necessary 
pressure without the cost of building a tower for the tank. 

The following table shows the size of silos required for 
herds of different sizes (allows each cow forty pounds a 
day for one hundred eighty days) : 
Number of Estimated Capacity Silo Diameter Silo Height 



Cows 


in Tons 


in Feet 


in Feet 


7 


26 


10 


20 


14 


51 


10 


32 


21 


73 


12 


32 


27 


101 


14 


32 


33 


119 


16 


30 


43 


155 


16 


36 


54 


196 


18 


36 



An average acre of corn will yield from eight to twelve 
tons of silage. Hence, knowing the capacity of the silo in 
tons, it is easy to compute the acreage of corn required to 
fill it. 

Harvesting by "hogging down." — Under certain con- 
ditions corn may be profitably harvested by "hogging down." 



CORN CULTURE 57 

This means that at the proper time a drove of hogs are 
turned into the field and allowed to feed themselves upon 
the com. This method will work well only in cases where 
there is a drove of considerable number, and when the 
fields of corn are not too large. The field should be all 
cleaned up in from two to four weeks after the hogs are 
turned in, since rain and mud are likely to injure corn left 
too long on the ground. 

It has been found by farmers who have made careful 
tests of feeding corn in this way that more pork can be pro- 
duced per bushel of com when the hogs are allowed to feed 
themselves from the field than when they are hand fed. 
The labor of gathering and feeding the corn is also saved, 
and manure evenly distributed over the field. Fences are 
usually set up to divide the larger fields into small corn 
lots. Twenty-six-inch woven wire is suitable for this use. 
The wire is attached to well set, corner posts, and tightly 
stretched. It is then tied to the corn stalks for posts. 
This type of fence will last as long as is required for clean- 
ing up the field. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Good corn, if cut when glazing, should yield about 
ten tons of silage to the acre. A ton of silage occupies 
fifty cubic feet in the silo. If a silo is made to hold fifteen 
acres of corn, and is built thirty feet high, what must be 
its diameter? 

2. If a cow requires forty pounds of silage a day, and 
the feeding season is one hundred and eighty days, how 
many tons must be stored for twenty-five cows ? 

3. If the corn yields twelve tons of silage to the acre, 
how many acres will be required for twenty-five cows? 

4. How many silos are there in your school district? 
Ol what are they constructed? What height and diameter 
are they? Do any of them have a water-tank in the top? 
What did each of them cost? Draw a silo. 



58 AGRICULTURE 

5. If a boy in husking twenty acres of corn yielding 
forty bushels to the acre averages missing the throw-board 
of the wagon once out of each fifty throws, estimating one 
hundred throws or ears to a bushel, what is the value of 
the corn lost at fifty cents a bushel, supposing the stalks are 
sold to a neighbor? 

6. Either from observation or agricultural bulletins, 
gather facts and write a description of a corn harvester; of 
a corn shocker ; of a silo. 

7. If a bushel of corn will produce ten pounds of pork, 
which is more profitable, to sell the corn or to feed it to 
hogs, providing pork is selling at seven cents a pound and 
corn at fifty cents a bushel? What would be the difference 
on one thousand bushels of corn? 

14. The Uses of Corn 

Corn as human food. — Corn is a native of America. 
It was cultivated by the Indians before the coming of 
white men. Corn was the principal grain food used by the 
Indians and was also widely used by the early colonists. 
Its use as a human food has now spread throughout almost 
the entire world, but it is still most widely used in this 
country. Corn-meal is the principal food product derived 
from corn, but hominy, hulled corn, corn grits, flaked corn 
and other specially prepared breakfast foods are also eaten. 
Corn starch is also a common food product. The unripe 
ears are extensively used and the canning of green corn has 
become an important industry. 

Corn as food for animals. — By far the larger part of 
the corn crop is used, however, as food for animals. Corn 
is the basis of the great meat producing industry of the 
United States and along with grass constitutes the chief 
food of the animals used for meat. Farmers have found 
it more paying to fatten stock with corn and then sell the 
stock than to sell the corn itself. One reason for this is 
that it costs less to ship the meat produced by a bushel 



CORN CULTURE 59 

of corn than to ship the corn itself to a central market. One 
bushel of corn will produce from ten to twelve pounds of 
pork, which can be shipped more cheaply than could the 
bushel of corn. 

Commercial uses of corn. — Besides its use as a food 
for man and beast, corn is employed in manufacturing 
some thirty or forty different products. For example, from 
corn are made several different kinds of glucose used by 
refiners of table sirups, by brewers, by leather manufac- 
turers, by jelly makers, by fruit preservers, and by apothe- 
caries. Corn also produces four different kinds of crystal 
glucose used in making candies and two kinds of grape 
sugar used by brewers and tanners. From corn there is 
made a sugar used in the manufacture of ale and beer. 
The pearl starch used by cotton and paper mills is made 
from corn, as is powdered starch used by the manufac- 
turers of baking powder and by the cotton and paper mills. 
Florine used by flour mixers, and dextrins used in the mak- 
ing of white fabrics, paper boxes, and the manufacture of 
mucilage and glue come from corn. 

From corn there is also manufactured a substitute for 
rubber which is extensively used commercially. Corn is 
the chief source of the manufacture of all alcohol and 
whisky and is the cheapest material nov/ available for the 
making of denatured alcohol, which is used for heating, 
lighting and other commercial purposes. 

Uses of the corn stalk. — Even the corn stalk has 
numerous uses. For example, from its pith comes the cel- 
lulose used for packing in war-ships. The corn pith has the 
quality of expanding when wet and hence will immediately 
swell and close any small hole in the vessel caused by the 
enemy's shot. Corn stalks are also used in the manufacture 
of paper pulp and in various kinds of stock foods. Corn 
cobs are used in the making of corks and pipes. A special 



60 AGRICULTURE 

variety of corn with a large cob is raised in Missouri fof 
the manufacture of pipes. It is estimated that approxi- 
mately fifty million bushels of corn are used annually for 
various corn products in addition to those intended as food 
for people and animals. 

The importance of corn as a food is increasing and sci- 
entists are discovering new ways of manufacturing or 
cooking it to make it both palatable and digestible. The 
very worst use that can be made of corn is to manufacture 
it into spirituous liquors since the use of alcohol as a 
beverage injures those who drink it and. brings sorrow, dis- 
grace and poverty to the user. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Teacher and class should join in making a collec- 
tion in small uniform bottles of all the different corn prod- 
ucts available that are used for the table. (Certain com- 
panies will supply samples of their products free of cost.) 

2. In how many different forms is the corn ear, or 
grain, fed to stock in your vicinity ? In how many different 
forms is the stover fed? 

3. How many of the different commercial products of 
corn have you ever seen? What foods have you recently 
eaten in which one or more of these products was used? 

4. Enumerate the uses to which you have seen the 
corn stalk and cob put. Soak some dry pith in water for 
a few minutes. What happens? 

5. How could you keep records or bookkeeping in con- 
nection with the corn crop? Make out a debit and credit 
book account covering a season's work on an acre of com 
from planting to harvest. (See Farmers' Bulletin No. 
511, "Farm Bookkeeping," and Farmers' Bulletin No. 572, 
"Farm Cost Accounting.") 

6. Sketch a map of the United States and locate in 
this the corn states. Indicate by different colors the first, 
second and third best corn sections of the country. From 
the crop report bulletins secure the figures of the last year's 
corn crop and the average yield for each state for the year 



CORN CULTURE 61 

as well as for the last ten years. Compare the yield of the 
last season with the yield of ten to twenty years ago. 

15. Corn Demonstrations 

"Demonstrations" are now becoming common in agri- 
cultural work. The purpose of a demonstration is to 
teach others some definite and well-known truth. The agri- 
cultural experiment seeks to discover some truth concerning 
the work of the farm, while the demonstration seeks to 
show others how to put this truth into practise. 

Demonstrations by the school. — Such demonstrations 
as the following may be conducted by the school for special 
exercises, evening programs, club meetings, district, county 
or state fairs, or special farm festivals : 

1. Demonstrations in making and preparation of a seed- 
corn test box, a rag-doll tester, and how to make the test. 

2. Demonstrate how to make a seed tray, a seed drying 
rack, and how to hang or place the seed corn. 

3. Seed corn stringing demonstration. 

4. Field demonstrations in plowing, cultivation, seed 
selection, hand pollenizing, etc. 

5. Home economics demonstration • showing how to 
make corn food products, val^iable dishes, hominy, corn 
mush, bread, etc. 

16. Corn Play Contests 

Play contests are one of the most interesting means of 
learning certain facts connected with agriculture. The 
games and contests in connection with various farm activ- 
ities add interest, develop skill and furnish a great deal of 
real fun besides. 

Suitable play contests. — ^The teacher and pupils can 
organize such contests as the following in connection with 
the regular school activities, for the playgrounds at recess 



62 AGRICULTURE 

or at public events, such as literary programs, fairs or fes- 
tivals : 

1. Seed corn stringing contest. 

2. Variety or strain naming contest. 

3. Corn-bread baking contest. 

4. Corn judging contest. 

5. Corn guessing game. 

6. Corn picking race. This picking race i? handled 
something like the old-time potato race where you place 
the ears of com from three to ten feet apart and the con- 
testants are to gather twenty-five ears of corn and place the 
same in a box or receptacle in the shortest time. 

7. Corn husking contest. 

8. Oral corn recipe giving contest to determine who 
can give the largest number of corn recipes in a stated time 
of five or ten minutes. 

All of these contests should be judged in general on 
speed, skill, condition of finished product, accuracy, etc. 
(See Bureau of Plant Industry Circular 104, U. S. Depart- 
ment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C, for further in- 
struction and score-cards on all corn contests.) 

17. Corn Club Work 

Three hundred thousand farm boys and girls are now 
enrolled in agricultural and home-economic clubs, most of 
which are connected with the schools. Club work is the 
performance of a definite farm, garden or home enter- 
prise, and is based on the best known farm and home prac- 
tises. Club work in connection with the school may con- 
sist of a number of enterprises, such as corn, garden, mar- 
ket garden, poultry, sugar beet, cotton, alfalfa and can- 
ning projects. 

The corn club. — One of the most interesting club 



CORN CULTURE 63 

projects is the growing of an acre of corn on a business 
basis. Boys and girls ranging in age from ten to nineteen 
are eligible and the pupils may be divided into two classes, 
an A class from ten to fifteen years inclusive, and a B class 
from fifteen to nineteen. The basis of award for corn club 
work- should be : 

1. Greatest yield per acre 30 

2. Best showing of profit on investment 30 

3. Best exhibit of ten ears 20 

4. Crop report record and story of club work 20 

.Total score 100 

Plan of work. — The following plan should govern the 
conduct of the work : It should be considered a legiti- 
mate means of extension service for the school, — a part 
of regular school work by which plants, soils, insects, plant 
diseases, crop management, labor income, farm manage- 
ment, etc., may be studied systematically for an entire crop- 
ping season. This necessitates making use of the district, 
state and national club leaders who always stand ready to 
help organize clubs and oversee the work. 

Report blanks. — Every club should have a crop report 
blank making a record of observations, receipts and ex- 
penses at the beginning of the season and another on 
which to make a complete report at the close of the season. 
These blanks are furnished free by the United States De- 
partment of Agriculture. Definite credit for this club work 
should be given in connection with the class work in 
agriculture and other related subjects in the school. 



CHAPTER II 
WHEAT 

BREAD is the stafif of life. Whatever else we may have 
on our tables, we usually have bread. It is so com- 
mon and necessary an article of food that we describe pov- 
erty by saying, "Not a crust of bread in the house," 

Yet the bread that you and I eat, wheat bread, is really 
a rather recent addition to the world's food. True, wheat 
has been known for many centuries, — so long that no one 
knows when or where it originated. But not until the last 
few generations ha^ it* been found possible to raise enough 
so that the great mass of people can have it daily for food. 

But oven yet wheat as a common article of food is 
almost unknown in many nations. Probably more than 
half the people living in the world to-day have never tasted 
wheat bread such as we eat daily. Either wheat is not 
grown, or it costs more than other foods and can not be 
afforded by the common people. In its stead they eat rice, 
barle)^ and other foods. 

1. Importance of Wheat as a Crop 

The United States raises more wheat than any other 
nation, and approximately half as much as all Europe com- 
bined. We supply about one-fifth of all the wheat grown 
in the world. Our annual crop is nearly 700,000,000 bush- 
els, enough if loaded into cars to make two solid trains, 
one reaching from New York to San Francisco, and the 
other from Regina to New Orleans. 

64 




tl 



66 AGRICULTURE 

The wheat belt of the United States. — The best wheat 
producing regions are in the Middle West and North. Kan- 
sas, North Dakota and Minnesota produce not far from 
one-third of all the wheat grown in the United States. 
If to these we add the following twelve states, Nebraska, 
South Dakota, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Washington, Mis- 
souri, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, California, Michigan and 
Oregon, we shall have the fifteen states that produce more 
than four-fifths of all our wheat. 

The yield of wheat. — The average yield of wheat for 
the entire country is about half what it is for corn, or four- 
teen bushels to the acre. The states that produce the largest 
amount of wheat are not necessarily the ones that show the 
largest yield per acre. Taking the average for ten years, 
the ten states producing the largest amount of wheat rank 
in the following order in the yield per acre : Washington, 
first ; Nebraska, second ; Ohio, third ; Illinois, fourth ; Indi- 
ana, fifth; Missouri, sixth; Minnesota, seventh; Kansas, 
eighth ; South Dakota, ninth ; North Dakota, tenth. 

The average yield of wheat is gradually increasing, but 
all too slowly. With still better methods of farming and 
with better selection of seed and improvement of the soil 
much larger crops of wheat can be raised. And this means 
cheaper bread, and more profit in farming. 

2. Types of Wheat 

Wheat is classed as winter wheat or spring wheat, de- 
pending on whether it is planted in the fall or the spring. 
It is also classed as hard or soft in accordance with the 
quality of the grain. 

There are three more or less distinct types of winter 
wheat, and three of spring wheat, as follows: 

1. Soft winter wheat. 

2. Semi-hard winter wheat. 

3. Hard winter wheat. 



WHEAT 67 

1. Soft spring wheat. 

2. Hard spring wheat. 

3. Macaroni wheat. 

These types furnish a great many different varieties, so 
many that it would be a hopeless task to try to learn them 
all. The United States Department of Agriculture and the 
state experiment stations have tested as many as one thou- 
sand different varieties since 1895. 

Climate and type. — In general, the more humid 
climates produce the soft wheats and drier climates the hard 
wheats. The introduction of hard wheats has opened up 
vast western regions to wheat raising which were too dry 
for the soft varieties. 

Better flour is made from hard than fiom soft wheat, 
though a very excellent grade is made by mixing the two. 
Macaroni wheat is the hardest type, and is chiefly used in 
the manufacture of macaroni, though some of this type is 
now being used for flour. Macaroni can not be successfully 
made from the soft wheats. 

Winter wheat. — Winter wheat is planted in the fall, 
lives through the winter, and ripens the following summer. 
It requires about one hundred days to mature after growing 
weather has come in the spring. 

About two-thirds of all the wheat grown in the United 
States is of winter varieties. In regions where winter 
wheat will withstand the extremes of temperature it is pre- 
ferred to spring varieties, since it (1) yields more, and 
(2) is more free from disease and from injury by the vari- 
ous insect pests. 

Kansas and Nebraska are the great centers for the 
hard winter varieties, while east of the Mississippi River the 
softer winter varieties are chiefly grown. More than sixty 
per cent, of all the winter wheat grown in the United 
States is raised in the states of Kansas, Indiana, Nebraska, 




U \ I \ 






KUBANHA 




RFD nf^E MINN BweSTTM. 4 

Common varieties of \Ybeat. 




Harvesting wbent witb n modern binder. 



WHEAT 69 

Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and 
Texas. 

Spring wheat. — Spring wheat is adapted to localities 
where climatic conditions are not favorable to winter vari- 
eties. About one-third of our wheat comes from the spring- 
sowed crop. Most varieties of spring wheat require from 
one hundred to one hundred and twenty-five days from the 
date of planting to mature. 

Alinnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota are the 
principal spring wheat regions of the country. These three 
states supply seventy per cent, of all the spring wheat 
grown in the United States. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. What proportion of the tilled land of your vicinity 
is devoted to wheat ? Is this proportion increasing or de- 
creasing ? 

2. What type of wheat is chiefly grown, winter or 
spring? Hard or soft? Do you know what are the chief 
varieties to be found in your neighborhood? Are the vari- 
eties bearded or beardless ? 

3. What is the average yield of wheat to the acre in 
your region ? How does this compare with the yield for the 
state? (Consult your state agricultural college for the 
yield of the state.) 

4. It is estimated by the United States Department of 
Agriculture that the average cost of producing an acre of 
wheat in the United States is about eleven dollars, includ- 
ing rental or interest value of land. Talk with your father 
about what the dififerent items of expense cost in your 
vicinity (such as fertilizer, preparing land, seed, planting, 
harvesting, thrashing, marketing, rental). Make a detailed 
list of these expenses, and compare with the average cost for 
the country. 

5. In similar manner figure what it costs to raise an 
acre of corn. Then find the market value of the grain 
from an acre of corn and from an acre of wheat, based on 



70 AGRICULTURE 

the average yield for your vicinity. Which crop pays the 
better, and by how much per acre ? 

3. Groining the Wheat Crop 

Wheat grows best on virgin soil, or on land that has 
been renewed by means of clover, manure, or some other 
form of fertilizer. The new regions opened up in the West 
at first produce large crops, but soon fail in yield if wheat 
is raised continuously without rotation with other crops. 

Preparing the seed bed. — Since wheat is one of the 
crops that can not be cultivated after planting, the seed bed 
should be prepared with especial care. The ground should 
be plowed, and then disked or harrowed until it is well 
packed and finely pulverized. The preparation for the fall 
and spring seeding is essentially the same. If the ground 
is new, the plowing may be shallow. The older soils require 
deeper plowing. 

Spring wheat is sometimes disked in on corn land with- 
out first plowing the ground. This, however, is a careless 
method of farming, and has been proved by careful experi- 
ments not to secure so large a yield as from plowtd land. 

Selecting and preparing the seed. — As in the case 
of corn, the best seed for wheat is usually that grown near 
home. New varieties and seed grown at a distance should 
not be used for the general crop until carefully tested by 
agricultural experiment stations and found adapted to the 
locality. 

Wheat selected for seed should possess the following 
qualities: (1) A plump bright grain of good wheat; (2) 
a stiff straw, able to withstand adverse weather; (3) a 
compact head, ripening early, and not easily shattered ; (4) 
good bread qualities; and (5) ability to resist insect ene- 
mies and diseases. 

Once the type and variety selected for seed are decided 



WHEAT 71 

upon, the wheat should be run through a fanning mill. 
This will select the heaviest and plumpest grains, as well 
as remove the seed of noxious weeds. If care is taken thus 
to secure the best of the crop for seed each year, there need 
be no fear of the seed "running out." On the contrary, the 
variety may actually be improved. 

Methods of planting. — The method formerly used in 
planting wheat was to sow it broadcast on the plowed 
ground, and then harrow it in. This is a very wasteful way 
of planting, however, since some of the wheat fails to be 
covered, and is picked up by the birds ; some of it is cov- 
ered too shallow, and fails to secure good roots; and some 
of it is covered too deep, and grows imperfectly. 

The method now used in all successful farming is to 
plant the wheat with a drill. This sets the seed at a uni- 
form depth, and gives it a moist fine bed of soil. Nu- 
merous experiments have shown that the best depth to 
plant wheat for average years is from one and a half 
to three inches. iWheat, like corn, loses both time and 
strength by being planted too deep. 

Wherever possible, wheat should be drilled in rows run- 
ning east and west. In dry regions, the prevailing winds 
then blow snow and dirt into the drills instead of out of 
them, as is the case when the rows run north and south. 
In east-and-west rows the drill also tends to shade the roots 
of the plant, and so protect them from the frequent thaw- 
ing and freezing which occur in the case of winter wheat 
when the sun shines directly into the drill. Because ot 
these uses of the drill ridges, the ground should not be 
harrowed after the wheat is sown. 

Harvesting the wheat. — Except in the semi-arid re- 
gions of the West where practically no rain falls during the 
harvest season, wheat should be cut as soon as it is ripe 
enough. Alany farmers allow their wheat to become so 



72 AGRICULTURE 

ripe as to shatter, and much loss results. It may he cut 
while the grain is still soft, so that it can be crushed 
between the thumb and finger. This will not injure the 
quality of the grain, and the straw will be of much greater 
value if cut slightly green. Early cutting also reduces the 
risk of storms. 

In regions where the grain can be allowed to stand with- 
out shattering until it has become fully ripe and dry, the 
cutting and thrashing are often accomplished in one process. 
This is done by a combination harvester and thrasher drawn 
by from twenty to thirty horses, or by a tractor engine. 

Wheat cut with the harvester should be carefully 
shocked, usually in nine-bundle shocks, eight bundles stand- 
ing firmly on the ground in the form of a circle, and the 
ninth used for a cap-sheaf. Careless shocking is respon- 
sible for much loss from weathering. 

When the wheat is well dried in the shock, it should 
at once be thrashed, or else stacked in well-built stacks. 
Wheat is too valuable to leave standing long in the field 
waiting for a thrashing machine. If once put in stacks, 
it should be allowed to stand for several weeks before 
thrashing in order that it may "pass through the sweat." 

4. Diseases and Insect Enemies of Wheat 

Wheat is the prey of many different diseases and insect 
enemies, which sometimes almost totally destroy the crop. 
Many of these are coming to be better understood, and rem- 
edies for them devised. Three principal diseases attacking 
wheat are scab, rust and smut. These are all caused by the 
growth of fungi on the wheat plant. A fungus is a tiny 
plant organism that grows upon some other plant, or on 
animal tissue, and draws its living from its host. We call 



WHEAT 



7Z 



any organism that gets its living off another organism in this 
way a parasite. 

Scab in wheat. — Scab is the least common of the three 




A good stand of wheat, raised by a Georgia club boy. 

diseases mentioned, yet it sometimes causes much loss in 
certain localities. It atti^cks the glumes, or chaff, which 
surround the kernels of wheat in the head. The entire head 



74 AGRICULTURE 

is seldom destroyed, only a few of the glumes being af- 
fected. Scab results in a shrinkage of the kernels, and 
hence a reduction in the yield and an injury of the quality 
of the wheat. No cure has yet been discovered for wheat 
scab. A second crop of wheat should not follow wheat 
that has been affected with scab. If this is necessary, how- 
ever, the stubble of the first crop should be burned to de- 
stroy as much of the scab as possible. 

Rust in wheat. — rRust is one of the most serious en- 
emies of the wheat crop. It is nearly always present in 
some degree, and has at times almost wholly destroyed the 
crop over considerable areas. There are two kinds of 
rust, one attacking the leaves and the other the stems of 
the plants. The stem rust is much more destructive than 
the leaf rust. 

Rust may in some cases live over winter on the old 
plants, and be ready to attack the new crop if wheat is 
again planted on the field. Wheat rust also lives on other 
plants, especially the barberry, and is spread from' them by 
birds or insects to wheat-fields. Laws have been passed in 
some states requiring the destruction of barberry hedges 
because of their part in spreading rust. 

Moist seasons are more favorable to the ravages of 
rust than dry. Rust results in weakening the stem of the 
wheat plant, and reducing the size and quality of the grain. 
In some cases the heads even fail to fill, and the crop is a 
total failure. There is no known cure for rust, though cer- 
tain varieties of wheat are better able to resist it than 
others. The earlier varieties are usually safer than the 
later. 

Smut in wheat. — There are two kinds of smut that 
attack the wheat plant, loose smut and stinking smut. Loose 
smut usually destroys both the glumes and the kernels, leav- 
ing only the bare stem. Stinking smut grows inside the 




Stinkiug smut of wbeiit: smutted bend aud smut balls at 
rigbt ; sound bead aud kernels at left. 



76 AGRICULTURE 

glumes, destroying the kernel only, and taking its place. 
The spores from which stinking smut grows attach them- 
selves to the kernels of wheat, and are therefore often 
sown with the seed. This fact makes it possible to combat 
this type of smut by treating seed wheat in such a way as 
to kill any smut spores that may be present. 

One of the surest and cheapest ways of treating the 
seed for stinking smut is by the application of a solution 
of formalin. One pint of forty per cent, formalin mixed 
in forty-five gallons of water will treat one hundred bushels 
of wheat. The wheat may be spread out thin on a tight 
floor and sprinkled with the moisture, shoveling it over 
so that each grain is sure to become dampened. 

After it is well sprinkled the wheat should be covered 
with sacks or blankets to keep it from drying out too rap- 
idly. After a few hours, it may be spread out, or stirred, to 
hasten the drying in preparation for sowing. Ten pounds of 
copper sulphate dissolved in twenty-five gallons of water 
may be used instead of the formalin. 

Loose smut may be prevented by what is called the hot- 
water treatment of the seed. The wheat is put into sacks 
and immersed in tubs of water warmed to a temperature 
of one hundred and twenty degrees Fahrenheit. When the 
wheat has become thoroughly warmed, it is taken out, 
drained, and again dipped in water, this time heated to 
a temperature of one hundred and thirty-five degrees. The 
sacks may now be dipped at once in cold water, which will 
serve to keep the kernels from swelling. The wheat should 
then be spread where it will dry quickly. The general use 
of these well tested remedies should make smut of rare 
occurrence. 

Chinch-bugs. — Chinch-bugs are among the worst of 
the insect enemies of wheat. They are easily recognized as 
a small dark-colored insect, with white wing covers. 




Loose smut of wheat. Sound Lead at left; differeut stages of 
smutted development at right. 



78 AGRICULTURE 

Chinch-bugs damage the wheat by sucking the sap from 
the plant, and thus checking its growth. The mature bugs 
live over winter, lay their eggs in the spring, and the young 
are soon hatched out, showing at first a reddish color. 

No effective way of controlling chinch-bugs has yet 
been discovered. It is, however, helpful to burn the rub- 
bish of any infected field in the fall, as this will destroy 
large numbers of the bugs, and leave the remainder with- 
out hiding-places. 

The Hessian fly. — The Hessian fly is a small, mos- 
quito-like insect that lays Its eggs on the growing wheat. 
These eggs soon hatch, and the larvae begin at once to suck 
the juices from the young plant. 

One method of handling these pests is to turn under 
the first planting of wheat that has been attacked, and then 
sow another crop on the ground. This, however, is an ex- 
pensive method of getting rid of them. The burning of 
fields in the fall, fall plowing, and rotation of crops are 
all helpful in checking their ravages. 

Grasshoppers. — Grasshoppers are less to be dreaded 
now than in earlier years, though they occasionally do great 
damage to the wheat crop. The grasshopper lays its eggs 
in the summer, and they do not hatch until the following 
spring. It is possible greatly to reduce their number by 
late, deep fall plowing, which buries the eggs so deep 
that the young when hatched do not find their way to the 
surface. Poisonous sprays are also used to destroy the 
young hoppers. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. If winter wheat has been sown in your neighbor- 
hood, visit two or more fields and note (1) whether the 
seed was sown broadcast or drilled, (2) the direction of 
the drill rows, and (3) the evenness of the stand. 



WHEAT 79 

2. Make a collection of all the different types of wheat 
available, and learn to identify them, (1) from the grain, 
and (2) from the head and straw, 

3. Obtain samples of unthrashed wheat, and search for 
leaf rust ; for stem rust. Compare the heads and kernels 
on the rusted stalks with those on healthy heads. 

4. Find examples of stinking smut, of loose smut. 
What is the condition of the straw and grain in each case 
as compared with healthy plants? 

5. Go out into fields of wheat and oats stubble and 
look under bunches of straw or rubbish for chinch-bugs. 
Bring specimens to school and examine them so that you 
can quickly identify them. 

6. Secure a score-card for wheat, and judge from 
twenty-five to one hundred grains of wheat. 

7. What is the best method for the testing of wheat 
for vitality ? Look up instructions on the new blotter tester 
and a few of the commercial tray testers. Make a test of 
one hundred wheat seeds and judge for vitality, dividing 
the seed after germination into three classes, strong, weak 
and dead. 

8. How would you keep a record or bookkeeping ac- 
count of a field of wheat? Make out a debit and credit 
account covering a season's work with one acre of wheat. 
(See Farmers' Bulletins, 511 and 572.) 

9. Sketch a map of the United States and locate the 
wheat producing states and sections. Insert the last cen- 
sus reports of wheat production for each state. Where are 
the leading wheat mills of the country? 

10. Compare wheat bread with bread made from other 
products such as corn, rye, etc. What differences do you 
note ? 

11. How much wheat is exported annually from this 
country? How much wheat is imported? 

12. What foreign countries produce wheat? Locate 
them on the map. 

(See end of chapter on "Oats" for suggestions as to 
wheat demonstrations, play contests and club projects.) 



CHAPTER III 
OATS 

OATS are one of the world's most important grain crops. 
Though not so old as wheat, oats have been grown in 
Europe for centuries. They were brought to this country 
by the early settlers, and are now raised in every state. 
The United States produces about one-fourth of all the oats 
grown in the world. Oats are chiefly valuable as a food 
for animals, yet they are also widely used as a human food. 

1. Importance of the Oats Crop 

Our oats crop is slightly more than a billion bushels a 
year, or a total yield of about one-third more than wheat. 
Because of the higher price of wheat, however, the value 
of the oats crop is only about half that of wheat. Among 
all farm crops, oats rank fifth in value, being surpassed only 
by corn, cotton, wheat and hay. 

The oats region. — ^The great oats producing region of 
the United States extends from New York and Pennsyl- 
vania westward to Nebraska, Kansas and the Dakotas. 
Each state in this great chain plants more than a million 
acres of oats annually. 

The following chart shows the thirteen states that pro- 
duce about four-fifths of all the oats raised in the United 
i)tates, with the per cent, of the total crop grown in each : 

80 



OATS 81 

Iowa 15% 

Illinois 14% 

Minnesota ^% 

Wisconsin • 6% 

Ohio ■ 6% 

Indiana 5% 

North Dakota ■ 5% 

Nebraska 5% 

Michigan ■ 4% 

Kansas 4% 

New York 3% 

South Dakota 3% 

Pennsylvania 3% 

All others 19% 

The yield and profit. — The average yield per acre 
throughout the United States is about thirty bushels. The 
highest yields are in the far Northwest, where the rainfall 
is heavy during the growing season, or v^here irrigation is 
used. Here the crop not uncommonly runs from one hun- 
dred to one hundred and twenty-five bushels to the acre, 
and sometimes reaches one hundred and fifty bushels. 

In the corn belt, oats are usually a less profitable crop 
than corn. The yield is less per acre, and the market price 
lower, while the cost of production is about the same. In 
Iowa or Illinois, the two leading state's in the amount of 
oats produced, the cost of growing an acre of oats if we 
include the rental value of the land, will average from ten 
to twelve dollars. When oats are thirty-five cents a bushel, 
it is evident that a crop of thirty bushels to the acre leaves no 
margin of profit. 

While oats do not pay so well as corn, it is necessary, 
nevertheless, to raise them, even in the corn region. For 
oats are needed, (1) to make possible the rotation of crops, 
and (2) as a food for stock, especially working horses. 
This crop, like corn and wheat, can easily be increased in 




Two types of oiit Iienrls: spreading or pauicled ou tbe left 
side or Lorse-ruaue ou the right. 



OATS 83 

yield and profit by improving the soil and employing bet- 
ter methods of seed selection and tillage. It is not impos- 
sible to secure an average yield of from fifty to seventy-five 
bushels to the acre throughout the oats region. 

2. Types of Oats 

Two general types or classes of oats are easily dis- 
tinguished — the spreading, or panicled, and the side-bearing 
or horse-mane. The former has a spreading^ bush-like 
head, branching from all sides of the central stem ; the 
latter carries the grains on short branches, all of which are 
attached to one side of the stem. 

Varieties for different regions. — It is impossible to 
tell how many different varieties of these two types exist. 
As in the case of wheat and corn, new va;rieties are being 
developed from year to year. Several hundred different 
varieties are now shown in the seed lists. 

In New England, the northern tier of states and the 
Rocky Mountain region, white oats of rather late-ma- 
turing, large-grained varieties are usually most successful. 
Examples of these varieties belonging to the spreading type 
are : Clydesdale, Big Four, Swedish Select and Lincoln ; of 
the horse-mane type. White Russian and Tartarian are 
well known. 

In the Missouri, Mississippi and Ohio River regions, 
extending as far south as Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Ten- 
nessee and Texas, and as far east as Ohio, small-grained, 
early, yellow varieties have proved the best. The Kherson, 
Silvermine, Big Four and Sixty Day are examples of these 
varieties. 

Successful fall seeding of oats is possible only in the 
southern states. For southern fall seeding. Winter Turf 
and Red Rustproof are the varieties most used. For spring 



84 



AGRICULTURE 



seeding in this region the Burt and Red Rustproof are sat- 
isfactory. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. How many acres in your father's farm ? How many 
acres are cultivated this year? How many acres in grass 




A 



B 



D 



(A) Sixty Day. grain inediiuu-sized, slender, yellow; (B) Red 
Rustproof, grain large, plump, reddish-brown; (C) North 
Finnish Black, grain medium-sized, plump, black; (D) Swedish 
Select, grains white, large and plump. 

land and pasture? How many acres in garden, orchard, 
lawn and barnyard? 

2. How many acres are devoted (1) to corn; (2) to 
wheat; (3) to oats; (4) to other farm crops? What per- 
centage is the acreage of each crop to all the land culti- 
vated? To the whole farm? 

3. Find how many acres altogether in the farms rep- 
resented by the pupils in the school. Then answer each 
of the four questions asked in number "2" for all these 
farms summed together. How do the percentages for each 



OATS 



85 



crop raised on your father's farm cortipare with the per- 
centages for the entire school district? 

4. What was the yield of oats per acre on your father's 
farm this year? What is the yield of corn? Learn the 



rr-n-r-rr 










I swmsM 



Two • common varieties of oats.. 



market price of each grain, and figure the value per acre 
for each. Now ask your father to help you determine the 
cost of raising and harvesting an acre of each crop. Which 
is the more profitable crop, and by how much to the 



acre 



5. Which of the two types of oats is raised on your 
father's farm? What variety? 

6. Make a collection of five or more different varieties 
of oats, study the kernels, and the entire plant if possible. 



86 AGRICULTURE 

and learn to identify quickly the chief varieties grown in 
your region. 

3. Raising the Crop 

Oats are usually planted with less care than any other 
crop. Where they follow corn in the rotation of crops, 
they are often sown broadcast on the corn land without 
previous cultivation or preparation of the ground. The 
field is then either disked or gone over with a cultivator 
and harrowed. This is a careless method of farming, and 
undoubtedly results in a diminished yield. 

Preparing the seed bed. — When oats are sown after 
corn the seed bed should be prepared by plowing or two 
thorough diskings before seeding. The oats may then be 
covered by harrowing. The corn stalks should be broken 
down before disking. This can easily be done by means 
of a heavy pole dragged broadside across the rows when 
the ground is frozen. A still better method is to cut the 
stalks with a corn cutter. If the growth of stalks and weeds 
is especially heavy on the field, it is best to rake and burn 
the rubbish to get it out of the way of cultivation. 

It sometimes may not be necessary to plow the ground 
for oats following a well cultivated crop. Especially is this 
true if the plowing can not be done in the fall. One of the 
things most necessary in growing oats is to get the seed 
into the ground as early as it can be worked in the spring. 
And the seeding can be done more quickly by disking than 
by plowing. There is little or no danger to oats from 
freezing after they are sown, and the seed will sprout and 
grow in a much colder temperature than that necessary for 
corn. 

Methods of seeding. — Oats are sown by two methods, 
(1) scattering the seed broadcast over the ground, and (2) 
drilling. The old method of broadcast seeding was to scat- 



OATS 



87 



ter the seed by hand from a sack sking over the shoulder. 
Machines for seeding have been devised which can be at- 
tached to the end-gate of a wagon. The seeder is driven by 
one of the rear wheels of the wagon by means of a sprocket 
wheel and chain. 

Drilling usually results in a larger yield than broadcast 




End-gate seeder for broadcast seeding of grain. 



seeding. The drill plants the seed uniformly over the field 
and covers it well. The drilled crop comes up more evenly, 
and ripens more nearly at the same time than from broad- 
cast sowing. Less seed is required when the planting is 
done with the drill, since practically all the seed is covered 
and given a chance to grow. This is impossible with broad- 
cast seeding. 



88 AGRICULTURE 

A mistake is often made in planting oats too deep. The 
ground is usually moist when the planting is done, and depth 
is not required to secure moisture to start growth. Many 
agricultural experiment stations have tested different depths 
of planting, and recommend about one inch as the best 
depth for most regions. 

Preparing the seed. — Seed oats should never be taken 
directly from the bin and sown, no matter how promising 
the grain looks. For oats ordinarily contain more dirt, 
weed seed and light grains than wheat. 

The seed should always be run through the fanning mill. 
The current of air blows out the light grains and much of 
the rubbish, and the smaller grains are removed by the 
sieves. This process of cleaning should generally exclude 
one-third or one-fourth of the oats run through the mill. 
If the seed is very light a still larger proportion will need 
to be rejected. 

Careful tests have shown that seed prepared in this 
way will yield several bushels to the acre more than if 
sown directly from the bin. Many of the light grains fail 
to sprout, and most of those that grow produce weak 
plants that yield little or nothing. It will well pay every 
farmer to take time in the winter to prepare his seed oats. 

Improvement of the. seed. — It is possible greatly to 
improve a variety of oats by careful selection of the seed. 
This may be done by going into the field just before the 
crop is harvested, and gathering, head by head, the strong- 
est, largest grained and best yielding plants, also giving 
preference te those that are freest from disease. From a 
peck to a bushel or more thus selected is thrashed out, the 
small, light or imperfect grains rejected, and the choice 
seed sown on a special seed plat to raise seed for the com- 
ing year's crop. 

Harvesting the crop. — Oats are harvested with the 



90 AGRICULTURE 

grain binder, the header, the mowing machine, and the 
combined harvester and thrasher. By far the greater part 
of our oats crop is cut with the binder. 

The best time for cutting oats is just as they are pass- 
ing out of the hard-dough stage of ripening. On account 
of the fact that they shatter rather easily when ripe, it may 
be necessary, especially if the acreage is large, to begin 
when the grain is passing out of the milk stage. Cutting 
too early leaves the grain slightly lighter and of a greenish 
color. 

The best method of shocking oats depends on the ripe- 
ness of the crop when harvested. If the oats are in the 
hard-dough stage when cut, they should be shocked in well 
built, round shocks. If the grain is green and the straw 
heavy or full of weeds, the long shock is better, since it 
allows freer curing. Either type of shock should be capped, 
except in regions where the winds are usually strong enough 
to blow a cap sheaf off, in which case it takes damage from 
lying on the ground. 

Thrashing.— Oats may be thrashed from the shock, 
or stacked and thrashed any time during the fall. A some- 
what better grade of oats is obtained by stacking and allow- 
ing the oats to "go through the sweat" before thrashing. 
The straw is also worth more for feed when the oats have 
cured in the stack. 

The custom followed by careless farmers of leaving 
grain standing for weeks in the shock exposed to the 
weather while waiting for the thrashing machine can not 
be too strongly condemned. A period of hot wet weather 
is almost certain to start the oats to molding, or sprouting 
in the shock. On the other hand, if the weather is very 
dry, the oats shatter, and many bushels are lost in handling. 
If the thrashing machine can not be secured as soon as the 
oats have dried sufficiently to thrash, they should be stacked 



OATS 91 

in well-built round stacks so constructed as to turn the 
rains. 

4. Insect Enemies and Diseases 

Oats are, on the whole, subject to fewer diseases, and 
the prey of fewer insects than wheat. The crop is, there- 
fore, less liable to total failure from these causes. 

Insect enemies. — Chinch-bugs attack oats, as well as 
wheat, though they usually do much less damage to oats 
than to wheat. They can be controlled only as already 
described in the case of wheat. 

In some seasons the army worm has caused much loss 
to oats, but usually not over extensive areas. There is 
no satisfactory method known of controlling its ravages. 
What is known as the green bug, a grain aphis, is one 
of the most prominent enemies of oats. Grasshoppers occa- 
sionally consume the greater part of the crop in relatively 
small areas. 

Diseases of oats. — The chief diseases attacking oats 
are rusts and smuts. These are of the same general char- 
acter as the rusts and smuts of wheat, fungous growths 
feeding on the growing plant. 

The rusts are of two chief types : ( 1 ) leaf rust, which 
is of a reddish-brown color, and attacks the leaves, and in 
some degree the stems, of oats shortly before ripening time ; 
and (2) stem rust, which is to be recognized as black spots 
appearing on the stems and leaves of oats just before they 
ripen. 

Stem rust is less common than leaf rust, but when 
present is far more injurious to the crop. The rusts are 
more serious as an enemy of oats in the South than in the 
North, appearing in the South almost every year, and greatly 
reducing the yield. Rust is far worse on moist hot sea- 
sons than on dry seasons. No sure cure has been discovered 



92 AGRICULTURE 

for rust in oats, though some varieties are more able to 
resist its attack than others. 

Smut ordinarily causes more injury to oats than any 
other disease. It has been estimated that from two to three 
per cent, of the entire crop is destroyed every year by smut, 
causing a loss of from $6,000,000 to $10,000,000. 

The smut of oats is easily recognized a little time before 
the crop is ripe. Instead of the kernels are found small 
masses of smut dust which have taken the place of the 
grain. Sometimes these smut balls are covered by the 
chaff, much as the kernel should be, and other times the 
chaff is lacking and the smut fully exposed. 

While there are two kinds of smut in oats, both will 
yield to the same treatment. Smut may be wholly pre- 
vented by treating the seed with formalin, as described 
for the treatment of wheat. It will also be effectually pre- 
vented by the hot-water treatment. In either treatment 
the method is practically the same as for the seed wheat. 
With so simple and sure a remedy for smut, every farmer 
who lives in a smut region should treat his seed before 
sowing. It costs almost nothing, and may result in an in- 
crease of several bushels of oats to the acre. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. How did your father prepare the ground for oats 
last spring? Were they sown on corn land? If so, were the 
stalks broken down, or pastured close? Was the ground 
disked before the oats were sown? If so, how many disk- 
ings? If more than one, was the second disking across the 
first, or by lapping ? Which is the better way ? How many 
harrowings did the oats receive? 

2. At what date are oats usually sown in your region? 
When does harvest begin? How many days, then, are re- 
quired for the crop to mature? How much seed does your 
father use to the acre? 




Smut of oats; smutted head at right; sound head at left. 



94 • AGRICULTURE 

3. Collect samples of unthrashed oats, and examine 
(1) for each kind of rust; (2) for each kind of smut. If 
it is not possible to find unthrashed oats, examine straw for 
rust and evidences of smut. 

4. Did rust or smut damage the crop in your region 
last season? Does your father treat his seed oats for 
smut? If so, by what method? Suppose your crop was 
reduced two per cent, by smut, how much did you lose per 
acre ? How much on the entire crop ? Would this not more 
than pay for treating the seed ? 

5. Does your father always run his seed oats through 
a fanning mill to select the better grains and remove weed 
seed? How long will it take to run one hundred bushels 
through a fanning mill ? Suppose it results in an increase 
in yield of two bushels per acre, how much profit would 
there be from the cleaning? 

6. Have you seen oats left in the shock until they 
were damaged, either by wet weather, or by shattering? 
About how much per acre does it cost to stack oats ? Sup- 
pose there is a loss of one bushel to the acre by allowing 
the grain to stand in the shock ; will it pay to stack? (Con- 
sider also the better quality of grain and straw.) 

7. Make out a debit and credit sheet showing the 
proper method of keeping an account with a crop of oats 
covering the entire season, beginning with plowing and 
closing with harvesting, thrashing and marketing of the 
oats. 

8. Test one hundred grains of seed oats for vitality by 
the use of the rag-doll tester or blotter tester, and estimate 
the percentage of strong, weak and dead seed. From this 
base your estimate on the loss of crop if all the oats sown 
in your home field are of the same standard of vitality. 

9. Secure a copy of a score-card for oats and judge 
twenty or thirty grains of oats. 

10. Sketch a map of the United States and locate the 
oat producing states. From the last crop census record 
the number of bushels of oats produced in each state. 
What foreign countries produce oats ? 



OATS 95 

5. Wheat and Oat Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate the making of a vitality test for wheat 
and oat seed. 

2. The method of separating chaffy wheat or oats and 
weed seed from the better grade seed. 

3. How wheat and oats may be used for the table. The 
girls can work out a number of recipes. 

4. In the field demonstrate the proper method of seed- 
ing and, when equipment is available, the methods of pre- 
paring seed bed, disking, fertilizing, etc. 

5. Demonstrate how to select individual wheat and oat 
heads for seed. 

6. Wheat and Oat Play Contests 

Plan and carry out the following contest games : 

1. Variety naming contest. 

2. Wheat and oat judging contest. 

3. Recipe giving contest. 

4. Bread baking contest. 

5. Oral descriptions by class members of a thrashing 
day at home. 

7. Wheat or Oat Club Project 

A wheat or oat club makes an interesting method of 
studying the economic production of these cereals. The 
members of the club should arrange to grow from one to 
five acres, studying carefully the system of "follow-up" 
instruction provided by the managers of such clubs in your 
county and state, and keeping a complete record of all ob- 
servations, receipts and expenditures. 

The girls can grow a small plat, say one square rod, 
with a view to studying the life history of the plant, its cul- 




A club girl witli lier baking of bread. 



OATS 97 

tural methods, and its use for food products. In connection 
with domestic-science work, the girls can prepare for ex- 
hibit purposes the various dishes possible from the oat and 
bake a loaf of wheat bread for the school exhibit each 
month. This makes an interesting demonstration for Fri- 
day afternoon programs. 

For a basis of award in prize contests or for credit rat- 
ings on home projects and the club work, we suggest that 
you secure recommendations of your Supervisor of Agri- 
cultural and Flome Economic Education in your state, and 
also get help from your State Leader of Boys' and Girls' 
Extension Work. In the absence of their aid, the following 
will be helpful : 

Home and Club Project Score Card 

1. Yield and quality of produclion 30 

2. Net profit on investment 30 

3. Exhibit of grain and materials 20 

4. Crop records and story of work 20 

Total score, if perfect 100 

Suggestions 

Have members of the class outline a set of ten demon- 
strations with "oats," five play contests. Have them stage 
and carry out some of the demonstrations and contests. 
See suggestions of demonstrations and play contests with 
"corn" and other chapters. 



CHAPTER IV 
THE POTATO 

THE common white, or Irish, potato is a native of South 
America. It was brought to North America by the 
early Spanish settlers. Potatoes are now so important an 
article of food in almost every country that little more than 
one-twentieth of the world's supply is grown in the United 
States. 

1. The Potato Plant 

Secure, if possible, a complete potato plant, including 
the roots and tubers. What is the shape of the stem ? The 
nature of branching? The type of leaves? The flowers? 
Do potatoes bear seed? Are potatoes raised from seed? 
Why not plant potato seed instead of the tubers? Are 
the tubers a part of the root system, or do the roots only 
bear the tubers as the stems of tomatoes bear the fruit? 
Compare a potato plant and a tomato plant. 

The plant. — The potato plant varies from two to four 
or five feet in height, though it does not show this great a 
height owing to its spreading habits of growth. The termi- 
nal clusters of flowers bear seeds, from which new varieties 
are often developed. For practical purposes the plant is re- 
produced from the tubers. 

Though both plant and roots die upon the ripening of 
the seed and tubers, the potato is a perennial through the 
tuber which reproduces the plant. Since the tubers are 

98 



THE POTATO 99 

destroyed by freezing, they are harvested before frost. 
Potatoes are annuals in all regions where the soil freezei 
during the winter. 

Tubers. — Examine a tuber. Note the distribution ot 
the "eyes." These contain the buds from which the new 
plants are produced. The end at which they are thickest 
is called the "seed" end, and the other the "stem" end. 
At which end is the tuber attached to the roots of the 
plant? Are some potatoes more deeply indented at the 
eyes, and more irregular in shape than others? Which are 
more desirable for cooking? Why? Which have the bet- 
ter market demand? 

Though there are hundreds of wild plants belonging to 
the same genus as potatoes, comparatively few of these are 
known as cultivated plants. Among the most closely related 
cultivated plants are the tomato and tobacco, which belong 
to the same family. 

2. Potatoes as a Farm Crop 

After corn, cotton, hay, wheat and oats, potatoes are one 
of our most valuable crops. They are raised in every state, 
though the chief potato region consists of ten or fifteen 
northern states reaching from the Missouri River eastward 
to the Atlantic. More than three million acres are planted 
to potatoes in the United States each year. The annual 
crop is nearly three hundred and fifty million bushels, or 
about four bushels to every inhabitant. 

The potato region. — The following are the fifteen 
states which, according to federal statistics, produced the 
largest amount of potatoes for the period 1902-1911, to- 
gether with the percentage of the entire crop of the United 
States grown by each: 



lOO AGRICULTURE 

New York 12.02% 

Michigan 9.72% 

Wisconsin 9.72% 

Maine 7.60% 

Pennsylvania 6.47% 

Minnesota 5.71% 

Ohio 4.66% 

Iowa 3.93% 

Illinois 3.39% 

California 2.71% 

Colorado 2.33% 

New Jersey 2.30% 

Washington 2.18% 

Indiana 2.15% 

Nebraska 1.15% 

All others '■ 24.35% 

The yield. — Potatoes, like other crops, vary gready in 
yield owing to dififerences in the fertility of the soil and 
the care taken in raising the crop. The average for the 
United States during the last ten-year period has been about 
ninety-six bushels to the acre. It is somewhat humiliating 
to know that, in spite of our improved machinery and scien- 
tific knowledge of the soil and plant diseases, we are now se- 
curing only about the same yield of potatoes that was pro- 
duced at the close of the Civil War. Experts tell us that 
this yield can easily be doubled, with comparatively small 
expense and trouble. 

3. Raising the Crop 

The soil. — Potatoes thrive best in a rich sandy loam 
containing a good supply of humus. Hard stiff soils or 
heavy clay are not well adapted to potato raising. Tho 
best soil en the farm should be devoted to the potato field, 
both because potatoes demand a better soil than most othet 
crops, and because the value of potatoes per acre is greatet 
than almost any other common crop. 



THE POTATO lOf 

Ground that h^s recently raised clover, alfalfa or some' 
other legume is especially suited to potatoes. While barn- 
yard manure will greatly increase the yield, it will also favor 
the ravages of scab and other potato diseases, and so lower 
the quality of the crop. It is usually a mistake to plant 
potatoes on a freshly manured field. If manure is used, 
it is better to follow a heavy manuring with a crop of 
corn, and then plant potatoes for the next crop in suc- 
cession. 

Green manuring, that is, the plowing under of green 
crops such as clover or alfalfa, will add greatly to the 
yield. If the sod is old, it is usually better to grow one 
crop of corn before potatoes are planted on the field. Com- 
mercial fertilizers can be used to advantage for potatoes on 
most soils. 

The seed bed. — Potatoes should have an especially 
well prepared seed bed. The plowing should be deeper than 
for most crops, since the seed is planted deeper and loose 
soil must be had for the roots and tubers. In average soils 
the plow should be set to a depth of not less than eight 
inches. 

The seed bed must be well pulverized and thoroughly 
packed. Usually not less than four harrowings and disk- 
ings are required for the best results. Experiments have 
shown that the difference in yield caused by harrowing part 
of a field four times and the remainder of it but twice may 
be as much as twenty per cent, of the crop in favor of the 
better preparation. 

The planting. — Potatoes should be planted not less 
than four inches deep. Less than this depth does not give 
room for the tubers to grow without protruding from the 
ground. This is sure to result in injury from sunburn. 
Most potato growers drill the seed, dropping single pieces 
of seed from twelve to fifteen inches apart in the row. In 



102 AGRICULTURE 

some regions potatoes are planted in cross rows like corn, 
with three cuts of seed to the hill. 

The date for planting differs in various regions, but 
the greater part of the crop in the northern states is planted 
during the last half of May. From twelve to twenty bushels 
of seed are required for an acre, depending on how the 
tubers are cut for planting. Where crops of any consider- 
able size are raised, the dropping is usually done with a 
horse planter, some makes of which are arranged to dis- 
tribute commercial fertilizer at the same time. 

Cultivating the crop. — Potatoes demand good cultiva- 
tion. Harrowing should be done before the potatoes are 
up. From one to two harrowings may be given after the 
plants appear. Throughout the growing season a fine soil 
mulch should at all times be maintained by means of fre- 
quent cultivation. Especially after a rain should the soil 
crust be broken. The cultivation should be rather shallow, 
and potatoes should not be hilled up as is so often done. 

Harvesting the crop. — When the vines have died the 
potatoes have stopped growing and the crop is ready to 
harvest. In the case of small fields, potatoes are often har- 
vested by being plowed out with an ordinary plow, the 
tubers being picked up by hand, and the field afterward 
harrowed to uncover any that have been missed. 

In regions where potatoes are grown in large quanti- 
ties the digging is done with machines, several kinds ot 
which are now on the market. The average machine will 
turn out about three acres in a day, and will require from 
five to ten pickers to keep up with it. 

Storing the crop. — In order to keep well, potatoes 
must be stored in a cool place. The house cellar is usu- 
ally too warm for them, and they also give out an un- 
pleasant odor that permeates the house. A common type 
of vegetable cellar to be found on many farms is built 



THE POTATO 103 

with concrete or stone walls, the excavation being made on 
a side hill. It is covered with a shingle roof, and has Ti 
board floor on a level with the ground at the upper side, 
thus making an excellent tool and machinery house over 
the space used for vegetables. 

4. Improvement Through Selection of Seed 

One of the first factors in successful potato growing is 
the securing of good seed. Without this, fertility of soil 
and careful cultivation are largely wasted. 

Good seed will possess the following qualities : It must 
(1) be pure, that is, free from mixtures of varieties; (2) 
be taken from productive plants, or "hill selected"; (3) be 
uniform in size and shape ; (4) be Urm and sound, not 
shrunken or decayed; (5) be entirely free from disease; 
(6) not wholly mature when harvested; (7) have sprouts 
just showing at time of planting. 

It has been estimated by experts that attention to these 
points would add at least ten per cent, to the potato crop 
each year. This would mean an increase of nearly thirty- 
five million bushels, worth about $21,000,000 annually. 

Pure seed. — Mixed varieties present several disad- 
vantages in potato growing. The crop will not mature 
evenly. Thus, when the earlier variety has ripened and 
is ready for the market or table, the later one will have 
the \ otatoes just setting, and unfit for use. Mixed vari- 
eties do not cook evenly, and when baked or broiled to- 
gether some will be overdone before others have softened. 
General mixture of varieties in potatoes as in other crops 
tends to degeneration and running out of the breed. 

Seed from productive plants. — Seed should be taken 
only from the strongest and most productive plants, no 
matter what the variety. This can not be accomplished by 



104 AGRICULTURE 

selecting seed from the potato bin, any more than the best 
seed corn can be selected from the crib or wagon. For a 
certain tuber may itself be of good size and look promis- 
ing, but have come from a plant that produced but one or 
two potatoes, or that grew only one tuber of fair size, 
with several culls. 

The most successful method of developing high-grade 
seed potatoes is what is called the tuber-unit method. This 
consists of selecting from the seed bin a quantity of the 
most perfect tubers, each to weigh from six to eight ounces. 
These are cut for planting by splitting the tuber into four 
quarters, from seed end to stem end. 

The tuber-unit method, — ^The four pieces of each po- 
tato are planted in succession twelve inches apart in the row. 
A longer space is left between the sets of fours, thus mak- 
ing it possible to watch the outcome of each tuber by itself. 
Before the plants begin to die, careful inspection is made, 
and any mixtures, imperfect or weak plants are marked for 
rejection. Only the most promising and uniform are re- 
served for the selection of seed. 

When the crop is harvested, each set of four is dug by 
itself. A further selection is made by rejecting the total 
product if any one of the four plants has failed to pro- 
duce uniform, desirable tubers. The potatoes produced by 
each set of four selected for seed are put into separate sacks 
and kept for further examination. 

Second season of tuber-unit planting. — Finally, the 
contents of each sack are inspected for the weight of mar- 
ketable and unmarketable tubers, and other desirable qual- 
ities of the type. From each of the four-plant units the 
best ten tubers are to be selected for the next year's plant- 
ing. This selected seed is planted the following year in 
the same way as the first season, thus giving forty plants 
to the unit instead of four. The product from the best forty- 



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106 AGRICULTURE 

hill rows is kept for seed for the general crop for the fol- 
lowing year. By thus keeping a breeding plat for seed, po- 
tatoes can be -greatly improved, and the yield much in- 
creased. 

The tuber-unit method can be rendered even more ef- 
fective by making the first selection from the field instead 
of the potato bin. This is done by going into the field 
before the vines begin to die and marking a number of 
the most vigorous and desirable plants. These are har- 
vested separately before wholly mature, and seed taken 
from the best hills. 

The practise of planting for seed the small and unmar- 
ketable potato culls can not be too strongly condemned. It 
lessens the yield, lowers the quality of the crop and causes 
the variety to deteriorate. 

Cutting seed potatoes. — Whether it pays better to 
cut potatoes for seed or plant the whole tuber has been 
much discussed. It is believed by many potato growers 
that under average conditions the yield will be greater when 
quarters are planted than when pieces with single eyes are 
used, and that halves will produce more than quarters. It 
is not sure that whole tubers will produce a larger yield 
than halves. The weight of experience seems to favor 
planting halves. 

Immature seed. — For vitality, high yield and good 
market qualities, potatoes intended for seed should be har- 
vested before entirely ripe (by hill selection) that is, be- 
fore the vines have died. Many experiments have shown 
that immature seed will produce a considerably higher yield 
than seed allowed to ripen before digging. 

Home-grown seed not always best. — Contrary to the 
rule with most farm crops, seed brought from another 
region often produces a better crop of potatoes than home- 



THE POTATO 107 

grown seed. Especially is this true when northern grown 
potatoes are taken farther south. Not only is the yield 
increased, but the time required for maturing is shortened 
by securing seed from colder regions. Great care should 
be taken in importing seed tubers not to introduce new 
forms of potato diseases. 

5. Potato Enemies 

Potatoes have many enemies, and the number seems to 
be increasing, owing to diseases being brought in from 
other countries. 

Scab. — Scab is one of the most wide-spread and de- 
structive of potato diseases. It causes a rough, pitted, 
scabby condition which may attack the tuber in patches, 
or extend over the entire surface. Whether scab is caused 
by a fungous growth or a species of soil bacteria is not 
certain. It is fortunate, however, that a very simple and 
effective remedy is known. This consists in treating seed 
potatoes before planting. 

There are several mixtures used for this purpose, the 
cheapest and most easily applied of which is a formalin 
solution. This is prepared by mixing one pint of formalin 
with thirty gallons of water. The seed potatoes are soaked 
in the solution for two hours, and then planted without 
allowing them to come into contact with bags or utensils 
in which scabby potatoes have been kept. 

Leaf, or early blight. — Leaf blight is another common 
potato disease. It attacks the leaves and stems, first show- 
ing about the time that the tubers begin to form. Its pres- 
ence may be detected by the presence of grayish brown 
spots on the leaves, the part of the leaf attacked soon be- 
coming hard and brittle. Within three or four weeks the 
leaves are all killed, and the stem is also affected. The tubers 




Club boy. and prize seed potatoes, sprouted enough for plautiuj 




A potato club boy from Massachusetts. 



THE POTATO 109 

grow but little after the leaves are first attacked; hence 
the crop is ruined unless the blight can be checked. 

The ravages of leaf blight can be almost if not wholly 
prevented by spraying the plants with the Bordeaux mixture 
(see page 208). This solution is applied with a spraying 
machine at the rate of about fifty gallons to the acre. From 
three to five sprayings during the season are required when 
leaf blight threatens. One pound of Paris green to the 
acre at the first spraying, and the same amount later in the 
season will also destroy the potato beetles, which often prove 
such a pest. 

Late blight, or rot. — The blotches and blackish 
streaks often seen running through tubers are caused by 
late blight, or potato rot. This disease first attacks the 
leaves and stems, causing them to soften and decay, pro- 
ducing a bad smell. Late blight often appears suddenly, 
and spreads through a field with great rapidity. A green, 
healthy-looking field may turn almost bJack in a day or two. 

The treatment for late blight is the same as for leaf 
blight, and should never be neglected in regions where 
blight is common. It is far better to begin the spraying 
before either form of blight begins to appear, for this is the 
easiest time to prevent it. 

Topics for Investigation 

L What is the acreage of potatoes raised on youi 
home farm this season? If you are not certain, go out and 
measure the field carefully. Compare the acreage of each 
of the farms represented in the school. 

2. What is the yield of your potatoes per acre? How 
does this compare with the other farms of your vicinity? 
With the state? With the United States? 

3. Select two medium-sized potatoes, one regular, 
smooth and with shallow eyes, and the other irregular and 
with deep-set eyes. Weigh each. Pare both potatoes, as 



110 AGRICULTURE 

nearly the same as possible. Now weigh the pared tubers. 
Which lost the larger percentage in paring? Which is 
easier to pare? Which looks more pleasing for the table? 
Which would be the better to select for seed? 

4. Bring a sample of as many different varieties of 
tubers as can be found in your neighborhood. Learn to 
recognize the chief breed characteristics so ae to identify 
the different varieties, such as Early Rose, Bliss Triumph, 
Early Ohio, Gold Coin, Burbank, Rural New Yorker, 
Walter Raleigh. What are the principal early varieties? 
Late varieties ? Do you find mixtures in which it is impos- 
sible to determine the varieties? 

5. Select tubers of the same size from different vari- 
eties, such as Early Rose and Rural New Yorkers. At 
your homes try boiling them together. Do they cook in 
the same time? Try baking, frying, etc. 

6. How deep does your father plow the ground for po- 
tatoes? How deep does he plant? Does he use commer- 
cial fertihzers? Does he manure the field for potatoes? If 
so, is the crop scabby? 

7. What plan is used in selecting seed for your potato 
crop? Are culls ever used for seed? Is there any more 
reason in using small potatoes for seed than in taking seed 
corn from nubbins? 

8. Suppose that seed potatoes are seventy-five cents a 
bushel, and that when quartered twelve bushels are re- 
quired to plant an acre; also suppose that by planting 
halves instead of quarters the yield is increased twenty 
bushels per acre, and that the new crop sells at sixty cents 
a bushel. Which way of cutting seed is best, and by how 
much an acre? 

9. Bring samples of potatoes affected by scab ; by rot. 
Study the effects of each on the tuber. Secure if possible 
samples of plants affected by blight, and learn to identify 
the disease. What is the most troublesome potato disease 
in your region? What is the remedy? 

10. After talking with your father about it, itemize 
the cost of raising an acre of potatoes. Compare this with 
the cost of producing an acre of corn ; an acre of wheat or 
oats. Now, taking the average yield of each crop, com- 
pare the profit of potato raising with that of other crops. 



THE POTATO 111 

Would it not be possible to double the yield of potatoes per 
acre in your region ? How would you go at it ? 

11. Illustrate how to keep a book account of an acre 
of potatoes from the preparation of the seed bed to the har- 
vesting and marketing of the products. Include items of 
expense in regard to yield, selection of seed potatoes, grad- 
ing, crating, marketing, and use of a special brand or label. 

12. Make a map study of the United States, showing 
the location of the potato sections and insert the last cen- 
sus crop report on potato production in these states. 

6. Potato Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate how to select seed potatoes from the 
hill. 

2. How to prepare seed potatoes by cutting for seed. 

3. How to manufacture potato starch out of culls and 
injured tubers. 

4. How to grade and crate potatoes. 

5. How to prepare potatoes in various ways for use 
in the home. 

7. Potato Play Contests 

1. Potato race. 

2. Potato paring contest, based on time, skill and 
weight of peeling, using twelve uniform tubers. 

3. Potato judging contest. 

4. Variety naming contest. 

5. Oral recipe contest. How to use the potato for home 
diet. 

8. Potato Club Project 

One of the most interesting field or garden crop projects 
is in connection with the production and management of 
a plat of potatoes. This can be taken up uniformly by 
both boys and girls, using not less than one-eighth acre as 
a basis. 



112 AGRICULTURE 

The club. — ^The study and practise in the work are to 
be based on the entire management of the chib plat, includ- 
ing treatment for diseases and insects, grading, crating, mar- 
keting, manufacturing of potato starch, study of the life 
history and the relation of the potato to the various activ- 
ities and studies of the schoolroom. 

Club festival. — A potato club festival, covering all the 
interests of potato culture in the community, with the ex- 
hibits of both fresh and cooked products, lectures on potato 
culture, etc., can be made one of the big events of the fall 
term, to which all the patrons of the school can be invited. 

The Award. — The basis of award should be as follows : 

1. Yield 30 

2. Net profit on investment •• 30 

3 Exhibit of products (fresh and cooked) 20 

4. Crop report and story 20 

Total Score JOG 



CHAPTER V 
FORAGE CROPS 

OUR study so far has dealt mostly with the cereals — the 
crops raised chiefly for their grain. We now come to 
study the distinct 'types of forage crops, or those grown for 
their leaves and stems, which are fed to stock. Besides 
serving them as food for animals, certain forage crops are 
of great value in enriching the soil and causing it to pro- 
duce larger yields of cereals. 

When the forage plants are fed green by grazing, we 
call the crop pasture; if cut, and at once fed green without 
allowing time to cure, it is called a soiling crop. If the crop 
is cut and allowed to cure before feeding it, it is called hay, 
strazv, fodder, or stover as the case may be. We have 
already noted that a forage crop, cut and stored so that it 
will keep green, is called silage or ensilage. 

1. Important Forage Crops 

The most important forage crops may be divided into 
two broad classes, grasses and legumes. 

Grasses. — ^The grasses are among the most wide- 
spread and important of our plants. They include an al- 
most endless variety, many of which grow without culti- 
vation, or even special seeding, the seed being carried by 
the wind, birds and in many other ways. 

Among the most important grasses grown in the north- 
ern states are timothy, blue-grass, the millets and red-top. 
Common to the southern states are Bermuda grass, carpet 
grass, Lespedesa, Johnson grass, orchard grass and hrome- 
grass. 



114 AGRICULTURE 

It must not be forgotten that our great cereals, corn, 
wheat, oats, barley, rice, rye, etc., also belong to the grass 
family. 

While there are so many varieties of grasses, they pos- 
sess certain characteristics in common. For example, prac- 
tically all grasses bear their seeds either ( 1 ) in a spike, like 
wheat, barley or timothy; or else (2) in a panicle, like oats 
or blue-grass. Most of the grasses have hollow stems, with 
nodes, or joints, dividing the stem into sections. 

Some of the grasses are annuals; that is, they make their 
growth, raise seed and die all in one season, as oats, corn, 
or wheat. Other grasses are perennials; they live on from 
season to season without replanting, as timothy, blue-grass, 
or Bermuda grass. 

Legumes. — The legumes differ from grasses in that 
they bear their seeds in pods, like beans and peas. These 
pods vary in form from the close, nearly straight pod of 
the pea to the curled pod of alfalfa. When the seed is 
ripe, the pod splits open, and the seeds scatter. Most 
legumes branch more freely than grasses and also send 
their roots more deeply into the soil. 

Some of the most important legumes are the clovers, 
alfalfa, soy-beans, coiv^peas, the vetches, and the ordinary 
garden peas and beans. 

The legumes differ widely in their manner of growth, 
ranging all the way from small herbs like clover, to vari- 
ous vines, shrubs and even trees. Some of the legumes 
are annuals, some are biennials, and others perennials. 

2. Importance of the Forage Crops 
Forage crops in the United States rank next in value 
after corn and cotton. The total acreage of improved pas- 
tures and harvested forage crops is considerably more than 
all the grain crops combined. 



FORAGE CROPS 115 

The forage producing region. — The most important 
forage producing region of the United States is found in 
the north central states, reaching from Michigan and Ohio 
on the east to Kansas and Nebraska on the west. The last 
federal census shows the percentage of forage crops of the 
United States produced by each of the states of this region 
as follows : 

Iowa 8.05% 

New York 7.26% 

Minnesota 6.22% 

Kansas 6.10% 

Nebraska 5.96% 

Wisconsin 5.15% 

Ohio 4.65% 

Illinois 4.48% 

California 4.45% 

Missouri 4.21% 

Pennsylvania 3.78% , 

South Dakota 3.76% 

Michigan 3.74% 

Uses of grasses and legumes. — Grasses and legumes 
have two principal uses: (1) they supply the most impor- 
tant part of the food of farm animals, and (2) they aid in 
building up the soil, making it productive for other crops. 
They are also serviceable in saving the soil from washing 
and blowing. 

A great proportion of our cattle, horses, sheep and 
hogs are raised with forage as their chief food. Where 
good pasturage is available, little or no grain is fed to grow- 
ing stock, and often none even to milk cows. And when 
grain is used to fatten stock, or to give strength, as in the 
case of work horses, forage is required to supply the vol- 
atile oils as well as bulk and coarseness necessary to diges- 
tion. 

Both grasses and legumes tend to improve the soil. 



116 AGRICULTURE 

Their decaying roots, stems and leaves form an important 
part of the soil, called humus. This vegetable matter not 
only enriches the soil, but makes it lighter and more por- 
ous, so that air can better get to the roots of growing 
plants. It also favors proper drainage in damp soils. 

Legumes and the nitrogen of the soil. — Legumes, 
however, enrich the soil in a special way, and are widely 
cultivated for this purpose. In order to understand how 
legumes do their work of improving the soil, it must be 
known that plants demand certain foods from the soil. One 
of the most necessary plant foods is nitrogen. If this is 
lacking in the soil, the crop does not grow well, and the 
yield is reduced. For example, wheat takes much nitrogen 
from the soil ; this is the main reason wdiy wheat can not be 
grown on the same land year after year. The nitrogen be- 
comes exhausted. The soil is "worn out." It is estimated 
that a twenty-bushel crop of wheat removes about thirty- 
five pounds of nitrogen from each acre. 

Nitrogen may be returned to the soil in several ways. 
One of the most common ways is by means of barnyard 
manure, which is rich in nitrogen. Another way is through 
commercial fertilizers, such as sodium nitrate, ammonium 
sulphate, or dried blood saved from slaughter-houses. But 
the amount of manure is limited, and the commercial fer- 
tilizers are expensive. And this is where the legumes come 
in to help. Legumes are able to gather nitrogen from the 
air and deposit it in the soil. 

There are millions of pounds of nitrogen in the atmos- 
phere resting on every acre of ground. But the plants 
can not make use of this nitrogen in the form in which it 
exists in the air. It has to be made over for them. This 
is accomplished by bacteria which have their homes in the 
tubercles or nodules found on the roots of leguminous 
plants. 



FORAGE CROPS 117 

In the small tubercles to be seen on the roots of clover, 
alfalfa, soy-beans or cow-peas are millions of bacteria, each 
able in the process of its own growth to take nitrogen from 
the air, change it into the form needed by growing 
plants, and leave it in the soil for the next crop. In this 
way the legume is able not only to secure its own growth, 
but to leave the soil richer through the action of its bac- 
teria friends. The raising of legumes is therefore one of 
the best and most economical ways of enriching the soil. So 
important is the group of legumes that a separate chapter 
will be given the most important ones. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. What are the chief grasses used for pasturage in 
your neighborhood? For hay? For lawns? 

2. What are the principal legumes cultivated in your 
vicinity? Which are annuals? Which are perennials? 

3. Make a collection of the principal grasses found on 
your father's farm. Study their method of growth. Com- 
pare stems, leaves, roots, and method of seed bearing. 

4. Make a similar collection and study of the com- 
mon legumes. 

5. Secure the roots of clover, of alfalfa, of peas, beans 
and any other available legumes. Make a study of the tu- 
bercles, comparing size and number. The bacteria are too 
small to be seen except with a powerful microscope. The 
tubercles are most plentiful in the early part of the grow- 
ing season. 

6. Illustrate how a bookkeeping record can be kept of 
the various types of forage crops, such as alfalfa, cow- 
peas, red and crimson clover, blue-grass, etc. 

7. I\Iake a study of the map, locate the principal for- 
age territories, and indicate the various types of grasses 
and forage crops that are being produced in the different 
sections. Indicate in each state the acreage allotted to 
each type of forage. 

8. Indicate what kind of stock thrives best on certain 
forage crops, and tell why. 



118 AGRICULTURE 

3. Forage Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate how to prepare and make exhibits oi 
the various types of grasses, legumes, plants, etc. 

2. How to make a grass seed test. 

3. The difference between a good and a poor grass 
seed head. 

4. Show how grass seed should be sown and what con- 
stitutes a good stand. 

5. Demonstrate how to make different things in con- 
nection with the forage crops, such as haycocks, stacks, 
and how to cut hay with the scythe. 

4. Forage Crop Club Project 

In many schools it will be practicable for boys and girls 
to organize into clubs for the purpose of growing and de- 
monstrating the possibilities of profitable farming in alfalfa, 
red clover, crimson clover, cow-peas, beans, etc. The age 
requirements should be the same as in other clubs. The 
area of the plot should not be less than one acre and may 
be more, depending on the size of the field available for 
club work. 

The award. — The basis of award should be : 

7. Average yield per acre 30 

2. Net profit on investment 30 

3. Exhibit of products (hay and seed) 20 

4. Crop report and story 20 

Total score 100 

For most localities the four most important forage crops 
in which to organize clubs would be alfalfa, clovers, cow- 
peas, and blue-grass sod for the lawn. 



CHAPTER VI 
THE CLOVERS 

CLOVERS are the most widely grown family of legumes 
among the farm crops. There are many different types 
of clover, such as red clover, white clover, alsike clover and 
crimson clover. By far the most important of these is the 
red clover, especially throughout the northeastern quarter 
of the L^nited States. The great red-clover section reaches 
from ]\Iaine to Virginia, and as far west as the Missouri 
River. Either alone, or mixed with grasses for hay and 
pastures, red clover claims from one-eighth to one-third of 
all the cultivated land throughout the eastern and north 
central states. It is now also being successfully grown in 
Montana, Washington, Oregon and in the far Southwest. 

1. The Red-Clover Plant 

Red clover is so common a plant that it can usually be 
studied near at hand in the field. Every pupil should there- 
fore examine the growing plant, and bring a complete speci- 
men, including the root, to school for further reference. 
Also secure a plant of timothy, the grass that is commonly 
grown with red clover. 

Topics for Investigation 

Study of the red-clover plant. — Compare the clover 
and timothy plants (1) as to root systems, (2) stem and 
mode of branching, (3) mode of flowering and seed bear- 
ing. 

119 




A youus red-clover plaut, showing the characteristic nodules 
on the roots. 



THE CLOVERS 121 

1. Which has the longer roots? Which will make the 
denser sod? Why? Do you find any tubercles on the 
roots? Is the stem of either hollow? Jointed? Which 
stands more erect ? Why ? What is the difference in their 
leaves? Which bears the larger number of seeds to the 
head? The larger seeds? 

2. After red clover has been cut, from what part of 
the plant does the new growth start? How many cut- 
tings a season can usually be made of red clover? Which 
cutting is used for the production of seed? 

3. What is the shape of the individual flower of the red 
clover? How many flowers to the average head? How 
many seeds does each flower bear? What is the shape of 
the seed? Learn to identify it when mixed with the weed 
seeds most commonly found in red clover, such as trefoil, 
curled dock, wild mustard, dodder, or others. 

4. Write an accurate description of the red-clover 
plant, so that one who has never seen the plant could 
identify it from your description. 

2. J'alue of Red Clover on the Farm 

Red clover as forage for stock.— Red clover makes an 
ideal forage crop for all classes of farm stock. Besides 
being highly palatable, it contains a large proportion of 
protein, one of the most necessary elements of food for ani- 
mals. So essential is protein for the growth of animals 
and the production of milk and butter, that bran, oil meal, 
and cottonseed-meal are commonly fed to supply this ele- 
ment. Where red clover can be successfully raised it largely 
takes the place of these more costly foods, and at the same 
time supplies the roughage needed by all animals. When 
grain is fed, as to chickens, hogs or cattle, red clover, either 
green or cured, forms a most valuable item of food. 

The worth of clover as an animal food has not been 
fully understood. It has been computed by experts that a 
ton of red-clover hav has almost two-thirds as much feed- 



122 AGRICULTURE 

ing value for farm stock as a ton of wheat bran, and more 
than two-thirds the feeding vakie of a ton of shelled corn. 

Red clover as a soil renewer. — As a soil stimulant and 
fertilizer red clover is almost without a peer except alfalfa. 
By its use in the rotation of crops, it is possible to keep 
the supply of nitrogen and humus almost undiminished in 
the soil, throughout years of cropping. The bacteria living 
in the root tubercles transform atmospheric nitrogen into 
soil nitrogen and leave it for other crops. The roots and 
stems, decaying, add to the humus. 

At the average price for commercial fertilizers often 
used to enrich land, a ton of clover is worth nearly ten dol- 
lars to plow under as a fertilizer. Fields which have been 
in red clover frequently produce ten bushels more of grain 
to the acre than before the clover was grown. 

In the use of clover as a fertilizer it must be remem- 
bered, however, that clover adds to the soil chiefly nitrogen 
and humus; and that if the crop is all removed each year, 
none being plowed under and no manure returned the 
amount of nitrogen humus in the soil is increased but very 
little. Potash and phosphorus, two other plant foods often 
failing in worn soils, must be supplied either by the use of 
commercial fertilizers or barnyard manure. 

3. TJie Raising of Red Clover 

Red clover will grow successfully on any soil that will 
raise corn. Soil that is wet and heavy or lacking in humus 
will not produce a satisfactory stand of clover. Red clover 
has a remarkable root system, sending its main roots down 
as deep as six or eight feet in favorable soil. This enables 
plants which have received a good start to withstand con- 
siderable drought. 

The seed bed. — The seed bed for clover should be 




Sweet clover on an Iowa farm. 



124 • AGRICULTURE 

finely pulverized, but well packed. If sown on freshly 
plowed land, it is necessary to harrow until the ground be- 
comes firm, else a poor stand is sure to follow. The 
ground should be clean, as clover is not a good fighter of 
weeds. 

Red clover may be sown in the early spring on fields of 
winter wheat. In this case no preparation of the seed bed 
is required. The covering of the seed may be accomplished 
by weathering. A more certain way is to harrow the 
wheat after the clover has been sown, or even both before 
and after the seeding of the clover. This does not injure 
the wheat. Red clover is also often sown in the spring 
with oats as a nurse crop. 

Another common method of seeding red clover is in 
standing corn just following the last cultivation. This plan 
has worked successfully, especially in the New England 
states. If the crop of corn is heavy enough to shade the 
ground, or if the fall happens to be dry, a successful stand 
is uncertain. 

Time of sowing. — In the larger part of the red-clover 
region, it does not seem to matter greatly whether the 
clover is sown in the spring or the fall. Which time is better 
depends on the season. Young clover plants do not easily 
withstand drought. If a dry season follows the seeding, the 
stand will not succeed no matter when the planting is done. 

In spring seeding with a nurse crop of winter wheat, the 
clover should be sown at the earliest possible moment. If 
the ground is not to be harrowed to cover the seed, it may 
be sown on a late fall of snow. This gives the clover plants 
the advantage of a start before the moisture is out of the 
soil, and also before the nurse crop gets large enough to 
shade the young plants. 

If the seeding is done in the fall, the crop should be 



THE CLOVERS 



125 



sown early enough that the clover plants attain a growth 
of from four to six inches before freezing weather comes 



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Seeds of red clover and common im- 
purities. 

on. Otherwise they may not be able to live through the 
winter, especially in the northern states. Seeding after 
August fifteenth is unsafe in the northern states. 



126 AGRICULTURE 

Clover seed. — A great deal of the trouble found in 
securing a good stand of red clover comes from poor seed. 
Good red-clover seed should (1) be plump, and not shriv- 
eled; (2) look bright instead of dull; (3) vary in color 
from violet to light yellow, but not be a dull brown; (4) 
show individual seeds medium to large size; (5) be free 
from all weed seed and rubbish; (6) be free from what 
is called "hard" seed. By hard seed is meant grains whose 
seed coat is such that the seed absorbs moisture but slowly 
and hence may not germinate for several weeks or even 
months. The seed of very new varieties may contain as 
much as fifty to sixty per cent, of hard seed. 

As is the case with most other farm crops, it is safer to 
secure clover seed from near home than from a distance. 
In this w'ay one may be sure that the variety is adapted 
to the vicinity, and that the seed does not contain noxious 
weeds and other impurities. 

Cleaning red-clover seed. — Ordinary red-clover seed 
contains many different kinds of weed seeds. Some of 
these look enough like clover grains that they may pass 
unnoticed. Sowing clover mixed with weeds not only 
reduces the stand of clover, but compels the clover to divide 
its moisture and food with its worst enemies, besides ren- 
dering the ground foul for other crops. 

Screening red-clover seed through a sieve with twenty 
meshes to the inch will remove all the smaller weed seeds, 
while retaining the medium-sized and larger clover grains. 
Seeds of wild carrot, ragweed, thistles, buckthorn, wild 
chickory, and several other weeds bearing large seeds are 
not removed in this way. Clover seed should first of all 
be selected from a field that is as free as possible from 
weeds. Even then, screening will pay, however, for the 
removal of the smaller clover and weed seeds. 



THE CLOVERS 127 

4. Harvesting the Red-Clover Crop 

Red clover should be cut for hay just as it is past full 
bloom. If cut much earlier than this the entire food value 
of the plant is not obtained; if it is allowed to stand too 
long the leaves begin to fall, and the stems become dry 
and stiff. If the second crop is to be cut for seed, it may 
be necessary to cut the first somewhat early. 

The care of clover hay. — In stacking or mowing the 
hay in a barn, the important thing is to avoid exposure to 
the weather, or becoming dry enough so that the leaves 
crumble and are lost. For the leaves of red clover, while 
they are only about forty per cent, of the weight of the plant, 
contain almost two-thirds of the protein of the whole plant. 
Clover hay that has become too dry is also very dusty, and 
not so good for feed. 

Red-clover hay does not shed rain so well as the grass 
hays, and should therefore be stored in a barn where pos- 
sible. If it must be put in stacks, these should be built 
with the greatest care, keeping the middle of the stack full 
and well tramped. The top should be covered with 
canvas, or with a coating of grass or straw. 

Care must be taken not to put red clover into the barn or 
stack when it is damp from dew or rain, as it has a tend- 
ency to heat. This heating not only damages the hay, 
but not infrequently sets fire to the stack or barn and burns 
it down. 

Harvesting red clover for seed. — Red-clover seed is 
usually secured from the second crop of the season, the 
first being harvested for hay. The clover is cut either with 
a mower or a special header, and run through a clover 
huller. By special adjustment an ordinary thrashing ma- 
chine may be used for hulling the seed. Qover straw still 
possesses gooa feeding value after the seed is removed. 



128 AGRICULTURE 

5. The Enemies of Red Clover 

In the starting of the clover crop, the two principal ene- 
mies to be encountered are drought and hard winters. A 
stand not infrequently fails from one or the other of these 
natural causes, which can not be guarded against, except to 
sow the crop at proper times, and according to proper meth- 
ods of seeding. Red clover is so valuable, however, that 
an occasional failure to secure a stand should only spur 
the farmer to try for better success. 

Insect enemies. — Various insects seem to find red 
clover highly palatable, and hence feed upon it. Yet only 
a few of these do the crop any great damage. 

One of the worst of these pests is a small species of 
beetle known as the clover root-borer. This beetle is of a 
brownish color, and grows about one-sixth of an inch in 
length. The larvae of this insect attack the roots of the 
clover, usually during the second year of the crop. They 
have done the most damage in regions east of the Missis- 
sippi River, especially in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. The 
only remedy so far found is to plow the damaged field as 
soon as the hay is removed. The larvae are then without 
food and soon die, leaving the field free of their kind for 
a future crop. 

The seed-bearing qualities of red clover are often seri- 
ously damaged by the clover-seed chalcis fly. This is an 
insect shaped like a wasp, and about the size of a seed of 
red clover. Just before the clover seed begins to harden 
this fly lays its eggs in the growing seed. As the larvae 
develop they use the seed for food, entirely destroying it by 
the time they secure their growth. The chalcis fly is respon- 
sible for much of the poor yield of clover seed. It is one 
of the worst clover crop pests in the United States. It is 
thought that light pasturing in the early spring, or even 




Effect on clover seed of Stages in development of red-clover 
the chalcis fly. seed: (a) flower; (b) immature 

seed vessel ; (c) flower ripe; (d) ma- 
ture seed vessel ; (e) seed. 




Second crop of red clover nearly ready to cut for seed. The 
first crop yielded 214 tons to the acre. 



130 AGRICULTURE 

mowing the clover soon after it starts will do much to reduce 
the danger. 

Clover has at least one enemy that works after the 
crop is stacked or mowed ; this is the clover-hay worm. It 
usually works in the bottom of the stack or mow, eating 
the softer portions of the plant, but also damaging the 
feeding qualities of the hay by its excrement and a web 
that it leaves. Salting the hay near the bottom of the 
stack or mow will do much toward stopping the work of 
this pest. 

While the botanists tell us that red clover is a perennial, 
it is seldom able to maintain a stand for more than three 
or four years, when it must be re-seeded. Red clover is 
usually followed by a grain crop before clover is again 
grown. 

6. Other Types of Clover 

None of the other clovers compare with red clover 
in their general value to the northern and central farms. 
Yet a few other types are of great importance in other 
sections. 

White clover. — White clover is well known over most 
of the red-clover region. It differs in its manner of growth 
from red clover, being of a creeping habit, and therefore 
not well adapted to use as a hay crop. White clover is 
very hardy, and will often work its way into a pasture with- 
out seeding, the seeds being carried by winds and the birds. 
It makes an excellent pasture grass, and is also often used 
in lawn mixtures. 

Alsike clover. — Alsike clover is named from a town 
in Sweden, where it is said to have originated. It resem- 
bles red clover but is of a finer, more delicate type, and 
therefore does not yield so well. While red clover will 
produce two crops each season, alsike clover will grow 
but one. This clover !<; esnecially suited to wet heavy soil 



THE CLOVERS 131 

which will not grow red clover, and in such regions proves 
a valuable crop. 

Crimson clover. — ^This clover, whose cultural methods 
are similar to those of red clover, differs from the other 
clovers in being an annual. It is a relatively new crop, 
having recently been brought to this country from Europe. 
It is grown chiefly in the southeastern part of the United 
States, where it assumes the same importance that red 
clover has farther north. Crimson clover does not demand 
so rich a soil as red clover or alfalfa, but is of great im- 
portance in the southeast and southwest of the United 
States. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. How many acres of red clover are now growing on 
your father's farm? Make a comparison for all the farms 
represented in the school. What other legumes are raised 
at your home? Is the red clover grown alone, or with 
timothy ? 

2. How long have your father's clover-fields been 
down? Ask your father whether red clover that has been 
down two or three years begins to die out? What is the 
oldest field of red clover in the vicinity? 

3. Secure several samples of red-clover seed. These 
may be taken from the supply intended for sowing, or from 
the barn floor where red clover is fed. Study these sam- 
ples with reference to the qualities named in the text for 
clover seed. What proportion of the seed turns out to be 
weed seed instead of clover? Can you identify the dif- 
ferent weeds represented? 

4. Make a seed tester out of two plates and pieces of 
Canton flannel. Place one hundred seeds of red clover be- 
tween the plates, dampen the cloth and keep warm for four 
or five days. How many of the seeds have sprouted? What 
percentage failed to grow? Is it probable that some of the 
seeds were "hard"? 

5. If red-clover seed such as you tested is selling at 
eight dollars a bushel, what would the good seed in your 
sample really cost the purchaser? Would a farmer better 



132 AGRICULTURE 

pay nine dollars a bushel for pure seed, ninety-five per 
cent, of which will grow, or seven dollars a bushel for dirty 
seed, seventy-five per cent, of which will grow ? Have in 
mind also the fact that the farmer can not afiford to sow 
weed seed with his clover. Will it pay to test the red- 
clover seed before planting? 

6. Secure specimen plants and samples of seeds of all 
the other clovers to be found in your region. Learn to 
identify both plant and seed. 



: L ,.,U ." ; . 



fcoob JcrfV/ 



CHAPTER VII 
ALFALFA 

1. The Alfalfa Plant 

FIRST of all secure, if possible, samples of growing 
alfalfa plants. Go into the field and dig up several 
plants of different sizes, one year old, two years old, and 
three years old. Try to obtain the entire root system of at 
least one good-sized plant. This may be hard to do, as the 
roots usually extend from eight to ten feet down in the 
soil, and under favorable conditions more than twice this 
depth. 

Study of the alfalfa plant. — Study the plant, noting 
the mode of branching, the system of leaves, the method of 
flowering, and the arrangement of seeds and pods. Look 
for the tubercles on the roots. These are most plentiful in 
the spring. Later in the season they fall off and decay in 
the soil. If the roots are pulled up roughly, the nodules 
will be stripped off and remain in the ground. The indi- 
vidual bacteria can not be seen except with a powerful mi- 
croscope. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. How many cuttings to the season are made of 
alfalfa? How many of clover? Of timothy? 

2. What is the average cutting of alfalfa to the acre? 
Of clover? Of timothy? Compare, then, the total crop 
for the season of the three kinds of forage? 

3. What is the market value of alfalfa per ton? Of 
clover? Of timothy? Compare the value per acre for feed- 
ing purposes of each of the three hay crops. \|n;i;x:5> 

133 



134 AGRICULTURE 

4. What does it cost to produce an acre of alfalfa and 
harvest it? Of clover? ,Of timothy? Find which is the 
most profitable crop based on market value of hay. (It 
must, however, be taken into account that alfalfa is of 
greatest value in renewing the soil.) 

2. The Grozdng of Alfalfa 

Alfalfa is one of the oldest plants known. It was 
known in Greece five hundred years B. C, and raised in 
England before Columbus discovered America. It has been 
known in this country for more than a century, but only 
recently has it become of any great importance as a farm 
crop. And even yet, its value is but little understood, and 
the methods of its growth are not generally known. 

Acreage of alfalfa. — At present barely one-tenth as 
many acres are devoted to alfalfa as to clover and tim- 
othy, and one-ninth as many as are put in wheat. We have 
twenty acres in corn to every acre in alfalfa. Yet the 
amount of land devoted to alfalfa is increasing every year, 
and it will soon become one of our principal forage crops. 

The alfalfa region. — The alfalfa region of the United 
States at present lies principally west of the Mississippi 
River. Out of about five million acres of alfalfa raised in 
the entire country, Kansas grows one million acres, or one- 
fifth of the crop. 

Alfalfa is especially adapted to dry soils and climates, 
and is therefore of the greatest value in the semi-arid re- 
gions of the West. Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho and 
other western states are using alfalfa to make fertile many 
acres of soil almost barren for other crops. 

The great corn belt states are admirably adapted to the 
raising of alfalfa, but have as yet done little with it. For 
example, the following are the ranks of these states in the 
production of alfalfa in the United States: Ohio, nine- 



ALFALFA 



13: 



teenth ; Iowa, twentieth ; Kentucky, twenty-first ; Illinois, 
twenty-second ; Wisconsin, twenty-third ; Indiana, twenty- 
fourth, and Michigan, twenty-ninth. 




Comparison of coru and alfalfa roots, showing why alfalfa is a 
drought resister. 



3. Alfalfa as Forage for Stock 

Alfalfa is the most valuable forage crop known for 
the feeding of most kinds of farm animals. Like 
clover, it contains a high degree of that most important ele- 
ment of food, protein, which goes to make both bone and 
muscle. With such forage as timothy, corn, stover, or straw 



136 AGRICULTURE 

fed to stock, protein must be supplied in the form of bran, 
or some other such feed. Alfalfa serves the same purpose, 
and is much cheaper to produce. 

Feeding value of alfalfa. — The following table shows 
the feeding value of eight different kinds of feed, based 
on the digestible nutrient material in each : (Farmers' Bul- 
letin, 339. These figures are only relative, since prices vary 
from year to year.) 

Value Value 

Feed per ton Feed per ton 

Green alfalfa ^-$7.00 Timothy hay $9.00 

Green clover 5.96 Cow-pea hay 19.76 

Alfalfa hay 20.16 Wheat . bran 22.80 

Clover hay 14.12 Shelled corn 20.16 

It is seen that the feeding value of alfalfa hay is more 
than double that of timothy. It is almost equal to wheat 
bran, and Just equal to shelled corn. Alfalfa has an addi- 
tional value for feeding stock because it is highly palatable 
to almost every farm animal, even to poultry and hogs. 

Bran costs an average of about twenty dollars a ton ; 
to raise alfalfa hay costs an average of about five dollars a 
ton. Why not grow the protein needed by the farm animals 
instead of buying it? As farmers learn more of the value 
of alfal^ this is what they will do. 

4. Alfalfa as a Renczver of the Soil ■■"> 

Alfalfa is probably the best of the legumes as a soil 
renewer. The bacteria, which grow in the root tubercle are 
able to take the nitrogen directly from the air and add it to 
the soil in such form that it can be used by other crops. 
The deep rooting system of the alfalfa plant also enables it to 
bring' other minerals from the lower layers of the soil, de- 
positing them near the surface where other plants can use 
iHietii. The generous roots add much hiimus to the sbil. ' " 



ALFALFA 



137 



In Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming, farmers have 
found that almost double the yield of grain is produced 
from the same fields after thev have been in alfalfa for sev- 



■V,... ..■,;-" '■?'^:-^% :• i "(* 









Examining tlie tubercles on alfalfa roots in a southern field. 

eral years. Even greater results have been experienced in 
the South in the yield of cotton crops that have followed 
alfalfa. 

Alfalfa can be used in the same way throughout the 
corn region to improve the soil for other crops. / Besides 
being one of the cheapest and most effective means known 
of restoring certain elements to worn soil, it is also a crop 



138 



AGRICULTURE 



which is in itself more, profitable than almost 
crop that can be raised. 



any other 



5. Raising the Crop 

Soil requirements for alfalfa. — It is especially im- 
portant in raisino^ alfalfa that soil naturally wet shall be 




School cliiJdreu iu Cook Couuty, llliuois, btudyiuj 
of alfalfa to corn growing. 



tlie reiuLiuu 



well drained. While alfalfa requires much moisture in 
growing, it will not stand the dampness of undrained soils. 
If submerged with water it will quicRly die. 

In heavy damp soil there is also likely to be more acid 
than is good for the alfalfa plant. Before sowing alfalfa it 
is, therefore, best to test the soil for acid. This can easily 
be done by taking a little of the soil when damp and plac- 



ALFALFA 



139 



ing it upon blue litmus paper. If the paper turns to a 
pink color it indicates the presence of acid, and the soil 




An alfalfa plant several years old. Note tlie generous root 
system and the size of the plant. 



should then have an application of lime to counteract the 
acid. 



140 AGRICULTURE 

Starting alfalfa. — If proper methods are used it should 
be no harder to start alfalfa than clover. First of all, the 
seed must be most carefully selected, and should be tested 
before sowing. This can easily be done by means of a 
home-made tester, as in the case of clover. 

Particularly should the seed be free from all noxious 
weeds or other impurities. For weeds are among the worst 
enemies of alfalfa. In some parts of the country the alfalfa 
crop is completely killed out of certain fields in a few years 
by the increase of weeds. 

The seed bed should be more carefully prepared than 
for almost any other farm crop. After plowing it must 
be harrowed so thoroughly as to pack it well and leave a 
fine mulch on top. If the seed bed can be prepared some 
time ahead of the sowing so as to give an opportunity for 
several harrowings so much the better. The seeding may 
be done either broadcast or with a drill. It has been found 
best in most parts of the country not to sow alfalfa with a 
nurse crop, since the nurse crop deprives the young alfalfa 
plants of moisture, nourishment and light. It is of great 
advantage to manure the field before seeding to alfalfa. 

Inoculating the soil. — It is usually best to inoculate 
the soil before sowing alfalfa. This means to put into the 
soil some of the bacteria which inhabit the root nodules. 
Almost any soil suitable for alfalfa has some of these bac- 
teria to begin with, so that alfalfa may often be started 
v.ithout inoculation. But where the supply of bacteria is 
very small, and where the soil is poor it will pay to inocu- 
late. This may easily be accomplished by gathering the sur- 
face soil from a field on which alfalfa has been raised, and 
scattering it at the rate of one hundred to five hundred 
pounds to the acre over the field to be sown. 

Similar results can be had by gathering soil in which 
sweet clover so commonly found along the roadsides has 



ALFALFA 141 

been growing. Care must be taken in gathering and scat- 
tering the soil not to allow it to be exposed to sunlight, as 
this will kill the bacteria. It is better therefore to secure 
the soil and spread it over the new field on cloudy days 
or in the late evening. The alfalfa seed should be sown 
immediately and harrowed in so that the bacteria may be 
covered, and be thus secure from the sunlight. 

Time for seeding. — Late summer has been found the 
best time for seeding alfalfa in the East and the South, while 
in the West spring seeding is the rule. Spring seeding has 
also been found to work better in Minnesota, Wisconsin 
and the Dakotas. No general rule as to the time of seed- 
ing can, however, be given. The chief thing necessary is 
to seed as long as possible before the time of year that will 
be hardest on the plants. In the North this requires spring 
or early summer seeding in order that the plants may get 
sufficient growth before freezing to withstand the winter. 
Alfalfa plants less than six inches high do not ordinarily 
live well through the hard northern winters. 

In some regions there is trouble in getting the plants 
started before drought comes on to check their growth. 
Throughout the corn belt late summer seeding should us- 
ually be practised. Alfalfa sown during August and the 
first week of September will have the best chance through- 
out this region. 

6. Harvesting the Crop 

Time for cutting. — Alfalfa makes the best hay if cut 
while in early bloom. A better means of determining the 
time for cutting is, however, to watch the start of the new 
shoots from the base of the plant. These shoots make the 
growth for the succeeding crop. When they are from one 
to two inches in length is the best time to harvest. In this 
way the new growth goes on without interruption. 



142 



AGRICULTURE 



If the cutting takes place much earlier than this, there 
is a loss of growing time in waiting for the new shoots to 
develop. If, on the other hand, the cutting is delayed until 
these shoots are too long, the mower will clip them off and 
they must begin all over again, thus delaying the next crop. 
Usually it is possible to secure three cuttings of alfalfa in 
the corn region and as manv as eight, ten or even twelve in 




Side delivery raker in au alfalfa Held, yielding two tuns to 
the acre on second cutting. 

some of the irrigated regions of the West. It is evident 
that if the greatest number of cuttings is to be secured 
each crop must be cut as soon as it is ready in order to let 
the next get properly started. 

Handling the hay. — Alfalfa, like clover, should be 
harvested so that the hay may reach the barn or stack with 
the least possible amount of handling or exposure to the 
weather. The alfalfa leaves contain a large proportion of 



ALFALFA 143 

the food value of the plant, and are easily crumbled and 
lost if the hay gets too dry. 

Probably the best plan is to cock the hay when the stems 
are about half dry, stacking it when moisture no longer 
shows as a wisp of the plant is twisted by the finger. In 
regions where frequent rains are the rule during the hay- 
ing season, it pays to have haycock covers consisting of 
squares of muslin to the corners of which weights are at- 
tached, or pins to thrust into the hay or the ground. 

7. Enemies of Alfalfa 

Weed enemies. — Undoubtedly weeds are the worst 
enemies of alfalfa in most parts of the country. This is 
particularly true throughout the West and Southwest. 
Among the weed enemies are ivitcli-grass, crab-grass in the 
West, blue-grass and -foxtail throughout the Middle West 
and the barleys in the far West. Cultivation with the 
spring-tooth harrow or disk is the best means of killing 
most of the weeds. 

An especially troublesome w^eed among alfalfa is dodder. 
Dodder is a plant which twines itself about the alfalfa seed- 
lings, soon attaching its threadlike stems firmly to the 
alfalfa plant. The dodder stem then withers away near 
the ground and the dodder continues to live as a parasite 
on the alfalfa. It is almost impossible to exterminate dodder 
when it has once secured a foothold in an alfalfa field. 
Turning sheep into the field to graze is one remedy for this 
pest. Another is to cut the alfalfa very low or even remove 
it entirely on any spots in the field where dodder starts. 

Insect enemies. — Alfalfa does not have so wide a 
range of insect enemies as some of the other farm plants. 
The alfalfa weevil and grasshoppers are probably the worst 




A six-weeks-old field of alfalfa iu North Dakota. 





-■■■■■■ ■■'■ '■■■'4 




^^^^^^^^P^^^^^!^^^ 



Alfalfa curiufT uDder cover. 



ALFALFA 143 

enemies of this kind, particularly in the regions of the 
West. It has been found that disking an alfalfa field late 
in the fall in the northern states and mid-winter in southern 
states exposes the weevil and grasshopper young to freez- 
ing and the attacks of birds, and thus reduces their number. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. How many acres of alfalfa are grown on each farm 
represented in the school? How long has alfalfa been 
raised in the vicinity? Why is not more grown, since it is 
one of the most profitable crops known ? 

2. Out of one hundred successful alfalfa growers in 
the corn belt, eighty-five testified that they had planted 
according to the following program : Manured the ground, 
fall plowed, summer fallowed the next season (surface 
cultivated without crop), limed, inoculated, seeded about 
August first. Make an inquiry among the alfalfa growers 
in your vicinity. How many did all these things? W^hich 
did they omit, if any? How did they succeed? 

3. Collect samples of field soil taken several inches be- 
low the surface from each of the farms represented in the 
school. Moisten the soil, roll it into a ball, cut the ball 
into halves, and place between the halves a piece of litmus 
paper, leaving it a few moments. Does it turn pink? If 
so, this is an indication of acid or sour condition of the 
soil. What treatment should an acid soil receive before 
being sown to alfalfa? 

4. If there is no alfalfa grown on your father's farm, 
talk with him about the crop, and join with him in starting 
a small field. Would your field need liming? Would you 
know where to secure soil for inoculating? If there is no 
alfalfa near, is there not sweet clover along the roadside? 



CHAPTER VIII 
OTHER LEGUMES 

WHILE red clover and alfalfa are the most important 
leguminous plants for large portions of the United 
States, there are several other legumes that deserve attention. 
Chief among these are the cow-pea, grown chiefly in the 
South ; the vetches, the soy-bean, the peanut Held beans and 
peas, and several others of lesser importance. These are pro- 
duced (1) for forage, (2) for soil renovation, and (3) for 
their seeds. 

1. The Cow-pea 

The cow-pea is to the South what red clover and alfalfa 
are to the West and North. It grows successfully on almost 
any kind of soil found in the cotton belt, and its cultiva- 
tion is being rapidly extended throughout this region. 

The plant. — The cow-pea was but recently introduced 
into this country, coming from China. The plant resem- 
bles the ordinary garden bean in appearance and manner of 
growth. It reaches a height of from one to nearly five 
feet. The smaller varieties stand nearly erect, the taller 
varieties spreading out vine-like on the ground. 

The leaves are broad, and grow in clusters of three. 
The flowers resemble those of the garden pea, and are 
greenish-yellow in color. The pods, which are cylindrical 
in shape, grow from two to some seven inches in length. 
The roots, which penetrate deeply into the soil, bear tuber- 
cles, which are the home of nitrogen-gathering bacteria. 




Tiie cow-ijeu. 



148 AGRICULTURE 

Cow-peas as forage, — Cow-peas, when harvested for 
hay, yield from two to three tons to the acre. The feed- 
ing value of cow-pea hay is fully equal to that of red clover, 
and nearly equal to alfalfa or wheat bran. It has been 
found a better forage feed for working animals in the South 
than grass hay. It is rich in protein, and therefore an ac- 
ceptable substitute for corn or cottonseed-meal in the fat- 
tening of stock. 

Since the cow-pea is an annual, it does not lend itself to 
the making of permanent meadows or pastures as does 
alfalfa. Cow-peas sowed in corn are profitably used as pas- 
turage for hogs, the gain in weight being in some cases 
more than twice as fast with a mixed feed of cow-peas and 
corn as when corn alone is fed. Cattle also do well on a 
pasturage of cow-peas. Bloating is likely to occur, how- 
ever, if grazing is allowed when the cow-peas are wet. 

The cow^-pea as a soil renovator. — The cow-pea im- 
proves the soil in two ways: (1) like other legumes, it is 
able through its root bacteria to gather nitrogen from the 
air and transfer it to the soil; and (2) its many roots, 
coarse stubble and stems, especially when the latter are 
plowed under as green manure, add much humus to the 
soil, making it more porous. 

In many parts of the South cow-peas are coming to be 
largely used in crop rotation with cotton the principal crop. 
The field is planted to cotton either two or three years in 
succession, then a crop of corn and cow-peas grown, and 
then a return to cotton. In Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, 
Alabama and other states of this region, cow-peas are being 
successfully used in rotation with wheat and oats. An in- 
crease of from fifty to more than one hundred per cent, in 
other crops following cow-peas is net uncommon. 




Hairy vetcli. 



150 AGRICULTURE 

2. The J 'etches 

The vetches are another group of legumes, grown most 
extensively on the Pacific Coast, less commonly in the South, 
and hardly at all in the North. Although more than one 
hundred dififerent varieties of vetch are known, but two are 
commonly grown in the United States, common vetch and 
lioiry vetch. 

Common vetch. — Common vetch is an annual, closely 
resembling the garden pea. Its stems are very slender, 
and grow from three to five feet or more in length. There 
are many dififerent varieties of common vetch, of which the 
gray-seeded is most commonly grown in this country. 

Low temperatures are fatal to common vetch ; it can not 
be successfully raised in regions where the thermometer 
goes lower than about fifteen degrees Fahrenheit. Since the 
vetches have a long weak stem, they are usually planted 
with a crop of small grain to support them. Common vetch 
is largely grown for hay in the extreme West, Avhere it is 
sown in the fall with wheat or oats. In the South, oats, 
rye or barley often are grown with vetch. 

Hairy vetch. — Hairy vetch is much more hardy than 
common vetch, and may be raised in almost any portion 
of the United States, It finds its greatest use in supplying 
a legume for forage and improving the soil where red clover 
or alfalfa does not succeed, or where a short rotation crop 
is desired. 

Hairy vetch has great power to resist drought, and 
does well on a sandy soil. It will also thrive on a soil so 
alkaline that most legumes refuse to grow on it. 

3. Soy-Beans 

Soy-beans are native to Asia, where they have been 
grown from time immemorial. In China, India and Japan. 




Root of a soy-beau, sliovviug bacteria-iuliabited tubercles. 



152 AGRICULTURE 

some two hundred varieties are cultivated for human food, 
furnishing a staple article of diet in many regions. They 
have not proved palatable to Americans, however, and are 
raised in this country chiefly as a forage crop. 

Where red clover or alfalfa can be successfully grown, 
soy-beans will have little place, since they are less profitable. 
They are especially adapted to the cotton belt, however, 
and to the southern portion of the corn belt. Since soy- 
beans are drought resistant, they also grow well in the semi- 
arid regions of the West. They have as yet made little 
headway as a crop in this region because of the ravages of 
the rabbits, which find their foliage a savory delicacy. 

Feeding value. — The soy-bean has as great feeding 
value for stock as alfalfa, and is worth more than cotton- 
seed-meal as a food for hogs, sheep or cattle. The straw, 
after all the grain has been removed, is as valuable as tim- 
othy hay, and even more palatable to most farm animals. 

Like other legumes, the soy-bean adds to the fertility 
of the soil in which it grows, and therefore possesses a 
double value to the farmer. 

4. The Peanut 

Peanuts are grown in this country chiefly in the south 
Atlantic region. The plant produces stems from one to two 
and one-half feet in length. It has rather small leaves, 
growing three in a cluster. After flowering, the stems pen- 
etrate into the soil, where the pods or nuts are produced be- 
neath the surface. 

Uses of peanuts. — Peanuts are produced largely for 
their use as human food. Besides the roasted nuts sold on 
nearly every street corner, large quantities are made into 
peanut butter, oil, etc. The vines make an excellent forage 
for stock. Certain varieties are grown in the South ex- 
clusively as forage for hogs. 



OTHER LEGUMES 153 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Secure if possible a complete specimen of each of 
the legumes described in the chapter. If they are not grown 
in your vicinity, write your agricultural college as to how 
they may be obtained. Study each different plant, and learn 
to identify it. 

2. Secure seed of each of the legumes discussed. 
Learn to identify the seed. Plant in the school garden or 
at home, and watch the development of the plant. 

3. Which of these legumes could be grown in your 
region ? Would they be profitable ? Talk with your father 
about this. If they would not pay, is it because of unfa- 
vorable climate, unsuitable soil, or because more profit- 
ible legumes can be grown? If you are not sure on any 
y<. these points, write your agricultural college. 



CHAPTER IX 
MEADOWS AND PASTURES 

ALTHOUGH meadows and pastures claim more than 
half of all the farm land of the United States, they re- 
ceive far less attention than any other part of the farm. 
About one-fourth of the acreage from which hay is harvested 
is native wild meadow ; this is chiefly located in the newer 
portions of the West. Pastures are often used from year to 
year with no care taken to improve them. Yet in many cases 
meadows and pastures well repay the time and expense nec- 
essary to make them more productive. 

1. Meadozvs 

Requirements of a meadow. — Meadows are commonly 
used for a double purpose — the production of hay, and 
providing the rotation of crops required to maintain the 
fertility of the soil. It is necessary therefore to select such 
plants for the meadow as will serve both of these ends. 
This is possible with our wide range of grasses and legumes 
from which to choose. 

Meadow plants should possess the following qualities : 
(1) yield well; (2) be palatable; (3) tend to improve the 
soil ; (4) grow strong and thick enough to keep down the 
weeds; (5) produce an even firm sod free from high tufts 
or bunches. 

The surface of the meadow should be smooth and free 
from obstructions that will interfere with the harvesting of 
the hay crop. 

154 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



155 



Meadow grasses and legumes. — Most of our meadows 
are mixtures of grasses, or of grasses with legumes. Al- 
falfa seems to thrive best alone, but most meadow plants 
grow well in company with some other variety. Red or 
crimson clover and timothy, for example, are commonly 
found growing together. 

Several advantages come from planting mixed meadows : 
the different plants draw their nourishment from various 




Two profitable weisteru industries — dairying and truit-iaisiug 
(Wasliiugton). 

depths of the soil, thus using its full strength more com- 
pletely and increasing the yield of hay ; mixtures accommo- 
date themselves to peculiarities of seasons, sometimes one 
grass and sometimes another thriving better ; mixed forage 
provides variety for stock, making the feed more palatable 
and affording a wider range of food elements. 

When hay is raised for market instead of being fed on 
the farm, however, it is often best to devote the meadow 
to one plant alone, thus producing what is called a "pure" 



156 AGRICULTURE 

hay. Timothy is the favorite meadow grass for pure hay, 
and leads the market in all the great hay-buying centers. 
For working horses, timothy is thought by many to be su- 
perior to clover or to mixed forage. Pure red clover or 
alfalfa is often desired for fattening stock. 

Meadow mixtures. — The mixture to be used in seed- 
ing a meadow will depend on the climate, soil and use to 
which the forage is to be put. Red clover and timothy 
are the most common mixture found throughout the north- 
ern states, the proportion of seed used being about three- 
fifths timothy and two-fifths clover. For damp undrained 
soil, alsike clover is substituted for red clover, or mixed 
with it. A very common mixture for average soils is the 
following amounts per acre: 

Timothy 15 pounds 

Red clover 6 " 

Alsike clover 4 " 

This combination will produce about a half-and-half mix- 
ture of hay the first year, with timothy predominating the 
second year, and pure timothy thereafter. On very wet 
soils, red-top may be substituted for the red clover If the 
soil is also strong in acid, it is best to omit both clovers, 
and use the red-top with the timothy. 

In southern regions, where clover, alfalfa and timothy 
are not successi^il in meadows, Johnson grass is the leading 
meadow plant, wi^h red-top frequently used as a mixture. 
Brome-grass is important in many regions of the North- 
west. 

Care of meadows. — Under our system of rotation of 
crops meadows are usually not left down more than from 
two to four years, with sometimes a year or two of pastur- 
ing before the sod is broken up for other crops. Most of 
our meadows are therefore new, and must be constantly 
remade. 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 



157 



One of the chief enemies of meadows is weeds. They 
not only hinder the newly seeded meadow from getting a 
good start, but injure the value of hay, reducing the mar- 
ket price. If allowed to grow in the meadow from year 
to year, the weeds will also leave the soil foul for the crops 
that follow when the meadow is a^ain tilled. 




Stacking by means of modern machinery saves much labor. 

It is no uncommon sight to see meadows grown up with 
ragweed, dock, smartweed, foxtail and other weed pests. 
If weeds appear after the crop of hay has been harvested, 
they should not be allowed to go to seed, but should be 
cut down with the mower while in bloom. 

Spring seeded meadows should not be pastured the fol- 
lowing fall even if the plants look thriving. This is sure 
to reduce the yield of hay the following season, and may 
cause the plants to winter kill by exposing the roots. The 



158 AGRICULTURE 

aftermath, or second growth, on older meadows may be 
pastured, though it does not pay to feed them close. Es- 
pecially should new meadows not be trampled by stock 
while wet. 

Permanent meadows. — Many meadows are located on 
wet ground, or on soil that for some reason is not cropped. 
In other cases there is neglect to rotate the meadow land 
with the remainder of the fields in the crop series. It is 
often found that meadows that are thus left for a number 
of years have a tendency to ''run out." 

The yield of hay on almost any meadow, left without 
attention for several years decreases from one-third to one- 
half. Weeds begin to appear, and patches here and there 
become thin or die out. The less desirable grasses crowd 
out the better ones. Such a meadow is highly unprofitable. 
If tillable, it should be plowed up and put into other crops. 
If not, it should be improved and its quality kept up. 

It is not hard to keep permanent meadows in a state 
of high production, but it requires some labor and expense. 
The following treatment will do much to keep permanent 
meadows in good condition : ( 1 ) No weeds are to be al- 
lowed to go to seed; (2) if the soil is run down, the field 
should be manured or other fertilizer used on it; (3) the 
soil should be loosened and the sod-bound condition relieved 
by disking ; (4) fresh pure grass seed should be scattered, 
especially over thin or weedy places. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. What proportion of your father's farm is in mead- 
ow ? In pasture ? Compare with all the farms represented 
in the school. 

2. How many different meadows on your home farm? 
How long has each been down ? Which are the more suc- 
cessful, the older or the newer ones? 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 159 

3. Make a collection of the different meadow plants 
produced on your home meadows. How many different 
kinds of grasses? How many legumes? Do you find any 
grasses that were not sown, but which have come in of 
their own accord? Learn to identify each different grass 
and its seed in your meadows. 

4. Make a collection of the most troublesome weeds 
found in your meadows. Learn to identify both plants and 
seeds. How many farmers in your region cut down the 
weeds on their meadows to keep them from going to seed ? 

5. Go out into some meadow near by and examine it 
for the five qualities specified for meadows. What was 
the yield per acre ? Is red-top as palatable for stock as tim- 
othy ? As clover ? Does timothy improve the soil ? 

6. Examine some meadow just seeded. Identify the 
plants. Is the stand good? Is the field free from weeds? 
Is it reasonably smooth? 

7. Are there any old meadows near at hand that are 
run down? If so, what do they need to improve them? 
How much do they yield? What is the quality of the hay 
produced ? 

2. Pastures 

More improved farm land is devoted to pastures than 
to any cultivated crop. Pasturage supplies the greater pro- 
portion of the feed for the production of milk, butter, beef, 
mutton and wool and is an important factor in the produc- 
tion "of pork. The annual value of our pasturage is more 
than that of any other crop raised. 

Requirements of a pasture. — Pastures should possess 
in general the same qualities as meadows. They should 
(1) yield well; (2) have such grasses as will start early 
and continue to grow late; (3) be palatable and nutritious 
to stock ; (4) form a firm tough sod that will stand tramp- 
ling; (5) have fine rather than coarse grasses; and (6) be 
free from weeds. 

Pasture grasses and legumes. — The best meadow 
grasses are not always the best pasture grasses. For ex- 

12 



160 



AGRICULTURE 



ample, timothy, the queen of hay grasses, is too coarse 
wlien used alone for the best pasture grass, and does not 
stand trampling so well as some others. 

Pastures should usually be made of a mixture of plants. 
This will provide some varieties that start earlier than 
others, root at different depths, adjust themselves to various 
kinds of seasons, supply variety for stock, and endure longer 




Ualiug liay iu tlie West directly from tlie luoaduw. 

without running out. Pasture mixtures should contain a 
much greater variety than meadow mixtures. 

Pasture mixtures. — Over the greater portion of the 
United States north of the cotton belt and the region west of 
the Missouri River, Kentucky blue-grass and white clover 
are the most common and valuable pasture grasses. No mat- 
ter what mixture is sown, one or both of these grasses is 
sure soon to make its appearau' e, and gradually force mo<^.t 
other grasses out. When blue-grass and white clover have 
taken possesion of a pasture they grow reasonably well to- 
gether, though in some seasons one of them will predomi- 
nate, and again the other. 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 161 

Throughout the South, Bermuda grass is the chief pas- 
ture plant, though it is commonly mixed with Rhodes grass 
for dry soils and with orchard grass for wet regions. 
Red-top is successful on wet heavy soil. 

For starting a pasture on good land in northern regions, 
a mixture may be made of something like the following 
proportions : 

Timothy 10 pounds 

Red clover 3 " 

Alsike clover 2 " 

White clover 2 " 

Kentucky blue-grass 3 " 

Brorne-grass 2 " 

Meadow^ i'escue 2 " 

Orchard grass 2 " 

This will make sufficient seed for one acre. If the pas- 
ture is on very wet, undrained land, the red clover may 
be omitted and red-top substituted in its stead. Even though 
timothy will soon be driven out by blue-grass and white 
clover, it should head the mixture as it roots more quickly 
than the others, and acts as a cover while the slower 
grasses are getting started. 

Care of pastures. — If permanent pastures are to be 
kept up to a high state of efficiency they demand even 
more care than meadows. 

On fairly good soils, pastures do not usually require 
manuring, though a light coat of manure will increase the 
yield of any pasture. Nearly every pasture needs the as- 
sistance of a mower to keep down the weeds. This is be- 
cause stock do not find most weeds palatable, and so eat 
the grass, leaving the weeds to flourish. Many pastures 
are thickly sprinkled with weeds which not only rob the 
soil but prevent cattle from eating the grass growing 



162 AGRICULTURE 

close to their roots, thus adding to the waste. Weeds 
should be cut from the pasture each year before they bear 
seed. 

Grazing stock not only reject the weeds for the more 
palatable grass, but also have their preference among 
grasses. All have noted that the uplands in a pasture are 
grazed close, while low wet areas are hardly touched. In 
many cases the low parts of a pasture are almost wasted, 
because the red-top and other wet-soil grasses are less 
palatable than the blue-grass and clovers which thrive only 
on well drained soil. Such marshy places should be drained ; 
the better pasture grasses will then soon take possession. 

Pastures, like meadows, may become sod-bound. Almost 
any old pasture can be improved by disking or cultivating 
with a knife-toothed harrow. When this is done, fresh 
grass seed should be scattered on thin places, or a desirable 
new variety added to the plants already established. 

After being grazed, pastures grow better if they have 
a rest from trampling and cropping. It is therefore best 
to have two pastures, using them alternately, instead of 
feeding the one continuously throughout the season. Such 
an arrangement usually requires only the expense of a par- 
tition fence, which the increased yield from the pasture 
will well repay. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. What is the age of the different pastures on your 
father's farm? What is the predominating grass? What 
other grasses are in the mixture ? 

2. Is there a pasture near by consisting of both upland 
and marsh land? If so, which is the more closely cropped? 
Secure samples of the grass from each part; what grass 
predominates in each case? Would it not pay to drain the 
wet portion? 



MEADOWS AND PASTURES 163 

3. Make a study of the pastures represented at the 
school for the weeds growing in them. What proportion 
of the pastures may be called weedy ? What weeds predom- 
inate ? Are they ever mowed ? 

4. How many of the farmers in your vicinity follow 
the plan of dividing their pasture, so that the one part may 
rest while the other is being used? If this is not done at 
your home, figure the cost of running a division fence so 
that it would be possible. Talk with your father about the 
cost of the fence. 

5. Are any of the pastures in your region ever disked 
to loosen the sod? Is new seed ever sown on them? Do 
you think any of them are sod-bound. How can you tell? 

6. What is the cost per rod of laying field tile in your 
vicinity? Investigate any wet areas on your home pasture 
where the grass is rejected by the stock, and determine how 
many rods of drainage would be required to make the soil 
tillable. Suppose draining would double the feeding value 
of such an area, would the drain pay good interest on its 
cost ? Figure this all out and talk with your father about it. 



PART II. HORTICULTURE 



CHAPTER X 
THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 

THE plan of every farm, village or suburban house 
should include a good vegetable garden to supply the 
home table. Not only are vegetables a highly necessary food, 
but they are much more palatable when taken from the 
garden fresh as needed instead of bought in a market. Nor 
is a well stocked market easily available to most of our 
homes. Hence, unless the home raises its own supply of 
vegetables, those who surround the table are likely to suffer 
from lack of variety and the absence of certain food qual- 
ities required for health. Without vegetables the table is 
also more expensive because of requiring more of the high 
priced foods such as meats and bread. 

The vegetable garden can be made the most profitable 
part of a farm. Half an acre of ground planted to a suit- 
able variety of garden crops vv^ill, if properly cared for, 
yield over one hundred dollars' worth of vegetables each 
season for the family table. This is from ten to twenty 
times what the same amount of ground in farm crops will 
produce. Although the garden requires considerable atten- 
tion, the labor demanded is not great compared with the 
returns in profits, good health and human efficiency. 

165 



166 AGRICULTURE 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Measure your home garden and find the amount of 
space devoted to vegetables this season. Make a com- 
parison with other members of the class. Compute the 
average size of vegetable gardens for the neighborhood. 

2. Make a list of all the different vegetables raised in 
your home garden this year. How many different kinds? 
What proportion of the space was devoted to each? Com- 
pare the number of different kinds and the proportion of 
each with the garden plan shown on page 170. 

1. Location and Soil 

The location. — There is a double advantage in having 
the vegetable garden near the house: the vegetables can 
then be taken from the soil as needed, without loss of 
time; and spare moments free from other work or chores 
can be given to the care of the garden. Where the soil 
is suitable it is best to have the garden only a few rods 
from the kitchen door. 

The soil. — Most vegetables require a well drained 
soil. Ground on which the water stands after a rain is not 
adapted to garden use. A slight slope to the south and 
east will favor the early maturing of the crops. 

2. Plan of the Vegetable Garden. 

The vegetable garden should be carefully planned be- 
fore time to begin planting, and a diagram made allotting 
to each crop its location and proper amount of space. This 
will save time in putting in the crop and insure a better 
arrangement. 

The plan. — A well planned garden provides (1) for a 
succession of crops supplying the table with fresh vegeta- 
bles from early spring to late fall, with storage varieties 
for winter use. This can be accomplished by selecting a 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 167 

reasonably wide range of crops and successive plantings 
of certain kinds. 

(2) The right proportion of space should be allowed 
for each vegetable, depending on the tastes of the family 
and allowing for the canning of a supply for home use. As 
a result ol careless planning an over-supply of one vegeta- 
ble often results in waste, while some other crop runs short. 




Members of National Market Garden Club packing fresh vege- 
tables for parcel-post shipment. 

(3) The crops should be arranged in the order of their 
time of planting, so that the planting can begin at one side 
of the garden in the early spring, and proceed across until 
all are in. This arrangement saves much labor in culti- 
vation without interfering with crops already planted. 

(4) If the cultivation is to be done with horse imple- 
ments, 2S it should be in all larger gardens, the rows should 



168 



AGRICULTURE 



run the long way, and a turf turning ground be left at each 
end. It also pays to place in each row plants that re- 
quire the same kind of cultivation and that mature in about 
the same time so that together they will get out of the 
way of later plantings. 




The boy with a hoe. Back-yard gardening. 

The arrangement^ shown, which will, of course, need to be 
modified to meet personal requirements, presents a seasonal 
order of planting. In the latitude of Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, 
Kansas and Nebraska the first ten rows can be planted 
about April first ; rows eleven to fourteen, inclusive, the last 
week in April ; and the remainder about May fifteenth. 

Planting time and maturity. — The time required for 
growth and the date of planting the common garden vegeta- 
bles recommended by the United States Department of 
Agriculture are as follows: 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 



169 



Kind of 
^'egetable 

Asparagus 

Beans, bush 

Beans, pole 
Beets 

Brussels sprouts 
Cabbage, early- 
Cabbage, late 
Carrots 
Cauliflower 
Celery 
Corn, sweet 
Cucumbers 
Eggplant 
French endive 
Horseradish 
Lettuce 

Melon, muskmelon 
Melon, watermelon 
Onions, seed 
Onion, sets 
Peas 
Peppers 

Potatoes, Irish 
Pumpkins 
Radishes 
Rhubarb, plants 
Salsify 
Squash, bush 
Squash, late 
Swiss chard 
Tomatoes 
Turnips 



Time of planting 
South JS'getii 



Ready for use 
aftee planting 



Fall or early 

spring 
Feb. to Apr. 
(Aug. to Sept.) 
Late spring 
Feb. to Apr. 
(Aug. to Sept.) 
Jan. to July 
Oct. to Dec. 
June and July 
Mar. Apr. Sept. 
Jan. Feb. June 
Aug. to Oct. 
Feb. to Apr. 
Feb. Mch. Sept. 
Feb. to Apr. 
Aug. to Oct. 
Early spring 
Sept. to Mar. 
Feb. to Apr. 
Mar. to May 
Oct. to Mar. 
Early spring 
Sept. to Apr. 
Early spring 
Jan. to Apr. 
April and May 
Sept. to Apr. 



Spring 
Spring 
Feb. to Apr. 
Dec. to Mar. 
Aug. to Oct. 



Early spring 1 to 3 years 

Apr. to July 40 to 65 days 

May and June 50 to 80 days 

Apr. to Aug. 60 to 80 days 



May and June 
Mar. and Apr. 
May and June 
Apr. to June 
Apr. to June 
May and June 
May to July 
Apr. to July 
Apr. and May 
May to June 
Early spring 
March to Sept, 
Apr. to June 
Alay and June 
Apr. and May 
Fall, Feb. to May 
March to June 
May and June 
March to June 
May to July 
March to Sept. 
Fall or spring 
Early spring 
April to June 
April to June 
Apr. to Aug. 
May and June 
April (July) 



90 to 120 days 
90 to 130 days 
90 to 130 days 
75 to no days 
100 to 130 days 
120 to 150 days 
60 to 100 days 
60 to 80 days 
100 to 140 days 
100 to 130 days 
1 to 2 years 
60 to 90 days 
120 to 150 days 
100 to 120 days 
130 to 150 days 
90 to 120 days 
40 to 80 days 
100 to 140 days 
80 to 140 days 
100 to 140' days 
20 to 40 days 
1 to 3 years 
120 to 180 days 
60 to 80 days 
120 to 160 days 
60 to 80 days 
100 to 140 days 
60 to 80 days 



170 AGRICULTURE 

The following plan of a garden ninety feet wide and two 
hundred and forty feet long suggests how to carry out the 
principles just stated : 

1 Asparagus o Rhubarb o Horseradish- 

2 ^ Parsnips o Parsley o Carrots 

3 : Onions 

4 Early Beets o — Swiss Chard o Salsify 

5 Lettuce (fol. by celery)_o_Radishes (cel.)-o_Onion sets 

(follow by celery) 

6__EarIy Turnips (fol. by cel.)-o_Spinach (cel.)-O-Onion sets 

(follow by celery) 

7 Early Peas (follow by celery) o String beans (eel.) 

8 Early potatoes (followed by turnips) 

9 Early potatoes (followed by turnips) 

10 Early potatoes (followed by turnips) 

11 Later plantings of peas 

12 Early cabbage o Cauliflower o.Brussels sprouts- 

13 Summer cabbage o String beans— 

14 Early sweet corn (followed by greens) 

15 Tomatoes 

16 Lima beans o Peppers 

17 Late cabbages 

18 Late sweet corn (followed by lettuce and radishes) 

19 Late sweet corn (followed by lettuce and radishes) 

20x xxxx@(^(a!@xxxxx@@@@@@@xxxxx 
21x xxxx@@(S@xxxxx@@@@@(g@xxxxx 

Cucumbers Early Late Watermelons Muskmelons 
22x xxxx@@@@xxxxx@@(g@@@@xxxxx 

Squash Squash 
23x xxxx@@@@xxxxx@@@@@@@xxxxx 



THE VEGETABJLE GARDEN 171 

3. Culture of the Garden Crops 

Most of the vegetables named in the preceding section 
can be raised without technical training in their cultiva- 
tion. A few, however, must have special treatment if they 
are to succeed, and if there is not time to give them this 
extra attention they would better be left out. 

Garden crops requiring rich soil and much tillage. — 
Although the whole garden should be much richer than for 
the field crops, the following vegetables require an espe- 
cially rich soil ; cabbages, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, egg- 
plant, celery, onions and melons. Melons may have the 
hills well manured and the remainder of the area no richer 
than the rest of the garden. A sand loam, rich in humus, 
is considered best for most vegetables. 

In general it may be said that the plants which demand 
a very rich soil also need a greater amount of tillage than 
the remainder of the garden. 

Vegetables that require transplanting. — The season 
required for certain vegetables to mature for the table is 
so long that in the North they must be started under glass 
in the latter part of the winter and transplanted when the 
weather is warm enough. The common plants belonging 
to this group are cabbage, celery, cauliflower, Brussels 
sprouts, tomatoes, eggplant, pepper, sweet potato. Lettuce 
and muskmelons may also be transplanted to good advan- 
tage. 

The hotbed. — For small gardens the plants that are 
to be transplanted are often started in shallow boxes. The 
more common method is, however, to use a hotbed. 

A hotbed is made as follows : Select a sunny place shel- 
tered by a building or fence from the north winds, and 
make a bed of coarse manure from the horse stalls eighteen 
inches deep, eight feet wide, and any multiple of three feet 



172 AGRICULTURE 

long. The manure must be fresh and contain a good 
amount of straw. Pack the bed well by thoroughly 
tramping. 

Place on top of the bed a board frame six feet wide, 
twelve inches high at the north edge and six inches at the 
south. The frame may be as long as required. After 
placing the frame in position, put in it a rich garden loam 
to the depth of three to six inches, packing and smoothing 
it well. Cover the frame with glazed sash. 

If the manure is in good condition it will begin heating 
almost at once, and will soon raise the temperature of the 
soil. Do not plant the seeds until the heating has been 
well tested and the temperature has begun to go down. 
This will be in about three days. The hotbed is now ready 
to receive the seed. 

In raising the hotbed crop care must be taken to lift 
the sash during the warm part of bright days, and also 
to water sufficiently. Watering should be done in the 
morning on sunny days, else the cooling may chill the plants. 
If the temperature grows too high the sash must be lifted, 
or the plants will be destroyed. 

Transplanting. — When the time comes for transplant- 
ing to the open soil care must be used or the change may 
kill the tender plants or greatly check their growth. To 
avoid this hotbed plants are often transplanted to another 
bed, called z cold-frame, covered with glass but not heated. 
This is known as the "hardening off" process. Transplant- 
ing almost any plant is of great advantage since it causes 
the multiplication of many small roots which add to its 
growth. 

Vegetables that require special treatment. — The 
larger and later varieties of peas grow so high that they 
require support, else they spread out on the ground and the 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 173 

pods rot. Where an abundance of brush is available, rods 
may be stuck in the ground for them to run on. Woven 
chicken wire is an excellent substitute and takes much less 
time. Lima beans also need poles. Because of this, bush 
varieties are sometimes grown in their stead. 

Celery requires bleaching to produce the best results. 
To accomplish this, the plants are usually set at the bot- 




Moth (Heliothis obsoleta) ; the caterijill.irs from this siJtjcies 
attack many garden plants, also cotton, corn, etc. 

tom of a trench which is gradually filled in as the plants 
grow. At the end of the season the rows may be hilled up 
so that the plants are covered to the top. 

Cauliflower and French endive are vegetables that need 
to be bleached. When the plants are well grown, the leaves 
are brought together and tied over the top, thus protecting 
the inner portion from the sun. 



174 AGRICULTURE 

4. Insect Enemies of the Vegetable Garden 

Fortunately, most of the garden vegetables are not sub- 
ject to great injury from insects. Certain plants are, how- 
ever, special targets for these pests, and must be protected 
or they will almost certainly be destroyed. 

The most common enemy of cabbage and cauliflower is 
the cabbage-worm, which is the larvae of the common white 
butterfly seen about the cabbage patches. The most ef- 
fective remedy is spraying with the arsenate of lead prep- 
aration, made by mixing three pounds of the paste with fifty 
gallons of water. To this should be added a mixture of 
resin and lime, or soap, to cause the insecticide to stick to 
the leaves. 

The cucumber beetle. — The worst enemy of cucum- 
bers is a small striped beetle which eats the leaves of the 
young plants. When only a few hills are raised they may 
be kept off the plants by making a small wooden frame 
over which is stretched wire mosquito netting, and plac- 
ing these boxes over the hills. These pests can also be 
controlled by spraying with the arsenate of lead compound, 
The roots of the plants are sometimes attacked by the 
larvae of the bettle. Tobacco dust sprinkled on the roots 
is an effective remedy. 

The cucumber beetle is also the most troublesome enemy 
of squash, muskmelons and watermelons. These plants 
may be protected in the same way as the cucumber. 

The aphis. — The aphis, a small green fly, is a sucking 
insect that attacks lettuce, peas and other green leaf crops. 
It is also frequently found on flowering shrubs. It may 
be controlled by spraying with a mixture of soap and water, 
or with a nicofume preparation mixed according to direc- 
tions on the package. 

The cutworm. — The cutworm attacks a number of 



r'pl 





^, 



iifc. I . ... 




a 




Tlie white grub : (A) pupa; (B) beetle; (C) larva. 



li 



176 AGRICULTURE 

different vegetables, cutting them off just at or near the 
surface of the ground. The remedy is fall plowing, and poi- 
soning. An effective method of attracting to the poison is to 
dip clover blossoms in Paris green, or add Paris green to a 
mixture of bran and molasses, and strew around the roots 
of the plants. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a careful diagram of your home garden plot, 
showing its exact length and breadth. Now make a plan 
for this plot similar to the one shown on page 170, being 
careful to preserve the planting order from one side to the 
other. What plants would you add which are not shown in 
the sample garden? \V ild you leave any out? 

2. How many pla ings of radishes were made in your 
garden? Of lettuce? Of peas? Of beans? Of sweet 
corn? Of cabbage? 

3. Is your garden manured every year ? Is the soil in 
good condition and free from weeds? Is rubbish allowed 
to remain on the garden over winter, thereby making a 
harbor for insects ? 

4. Which of your garden crops have been most at- 
tacked by insects? Have you used any of the spray com- 
pounds as a remedy? If so, what ones, and for what 
insects? Was it successful ? Do you know how to mix and 
apply the more common insecticides? 

5. Talk with your father and mother and plan your 
home vegetable garden for next season. Bring your plans 
to school, and compare the different plans presented to 
determine the best. 

6. Prepare a plan and specifications for a small hot- 
house which can be heated with an old stove or from the 
house heating plant. 

7. Show how to keep a garden account for a season ; at 
least six different kinds of products should be included in 
the items. 

8. Make a map of the United States and show the two 
most important vegetables grown in each section. Com- 
pare the vegetable garden products of the Pacific Coast with 
those of the Atlantic Coast ; the northern tier of states with 
the cotton belt states. 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 177 

5. Garden Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate how to prepare, pack and ship vegeta- 
bles by parcel post. 

2. Show how to make different types of boxes for mar- 
keting products, 

3. Demonstrate how to make a home-made canning 
outfit, by using wash boiler, garbage bucket, pail and tub. 

4. Show how to can vegetables by the cold-pack method. 
(See Farmers' Bulletin 521.) 

5. Demonstrate how to mix garden sprays and how to 
use them. 

6. Demonstrate how to make vegetable dishes and how 
to serve them. 

6, Garden Play Contests 

All contests with garden products should be a com- 
bination of play with helpful practise and instruction. 

1. Vegetable judging contests, 

2. Story contest. Tell origin and life history of dif- 
ferent vegetables, 

3. Vegetable spelling contest. 

4. Vegetable drawing contest. Place on stand before 
contestants a number of vegetables and have them draw 
them. 

5. Vegetable canning contest. 

6. Paring, labeling and packing contests. 

7. Home Garden and Canning Club Projects 

One of the most interesting of club projects in connec- 
tion with the public schools is the work of the home gar- 
den and canning club. This can be undertaken in much 
the same way in both city and rural territory. The club 
plat should be operated on a business basis, and should be 



"•mit 



m""^ 




A Pasaeloua, Califoruia, scliool vegetable garden. 




Public scliool garden in Portland, Oregoi^ 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN 179 

large enough to make possible an attractive net profit on 
the investment of time, money and energy of the member. 
Club members should range in age from ten to eighteen 
years, inclusive, and be divided into two classes denominated 
as senior and junior gardeners. The basis of award should 
be as follows : 

1. Yield of garden 20 

2. Net profit on investment 20 

3. Variety of vegetables 20 

4. Exhibit of products, fresh and canned 20 

5. Record and story, "Hovir I Made My Crop" 20 

Total score —100 



CHAPTER XI 
THE FRUIT GARDEN 

THE fruit garden is not less desirable and profitable 
than the vegetable garden. Fruit is universally pal- 
atable, and a highly necessary article of food. And be- 
cause of the high cost, the remoteness of markets and the 
ease with which fruit wilts and decays, most of it must be 
raised at home or the family go without. 

1. Measure accurately the space devoted to all kinds 
of fruit in your home garden. Make a diagram of the 
garden showing the location of each different fruit. What 
proportion of ground is devoted to each ? 

2. Make a table showing the number of each kind of 
fruit tree, bush and vine. Compare diagrams and tables 
with other members of the class and seek the cause for the 
differences. Just what is the distinction between vegetables 
and fruit? 

Soil and location. — ^The soil and location suitable for 
the vegetable garden will in most cases be adapted to fruit 
raising as well. Heavy, damp clay soil needs to be drained 
and manured. The ground must be rich. As a matter of 
convenience and economy of time in caring for it, the fruit 
garden should be near the house. 

1. Plan of the Fruit Garden 

Since the plants set in the fruit garden are perennials 
and remain more or less permanently where they are first 

ISO 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 181 

placed, the arrangement should be well planned from the 
start. The order in the fruit garden will depend chiefly 
on convenience, economy of space, and the adaptability of 
certain plants to grow in one another's company. 

The plan. — The home fruit garden, like the vegetable 
garden, should be planned for cultivation by means of 
horses. The rows should therefore run the long way of 
the garden. The fruit garden may well join the vegetable 
garden, and be approximately the same size, about ninety 
by two hundred and forty feet for a farm garden. The 
entire plat will then contain approximately one acre of 
ground. 

It is impossible to specify the different allotments of 
fruit that should go into the home garden, since individual 
taste and the adaptability of certain fruits to the locality 
will need to be taken into account. The following plan, 
providing for a garden ninety by two hundred and forty 
feet, will, however, be suggestive : 

ooooooooooooo Grapes o ooooooooooo 

o 1 50 Blackberries o 70 Raspberries 

o 2 10 Apples 

o 3 40 Currants 

*^ 4 10 Peaches o 5 Pears 

5 30 Gooseberries 

^ 6 5 Cherries o 5 Plums o 5 Quinces__ 

o 7 Strawberries 

o 8 Strawberries 

In regions where the climate will not permit the grow- 
ing of peaches, pears or quinces, hardy apples can be added 
in their stead. Several trees each of apricots and nectarines 
will make a welcome addition where they are adapted to 
the climate. 

Varieties. — In selecting the varieties, care should be 
taken to secure both early and late kinds, so that the fruit 



182 



AGRICULTURE 



season may be extended as much as possible. Apples may 
be chosen to begin ripening at harvest time, and continue 
till late fall for winter storing. Cherries and plums may 
be selected so that the crop will last during at least two 




Apples growing in a Washington orchard. 

months. The same is true with grapes and many of the 
berries. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 183 

List of plants. — The following fruit garden list is 
recommended by the United States Department of Agricul- 
ture for regions of the latitude of northern Ohio: 

Apples (10 trees).— Two Baldwin, 2 Grimes Golden, 1 Falla- 
water, 2 Red Astrakan, 1 Bonum, 1 Bough Sweet, 1 Trans- 
cendent Crab. 

Peaches (10 trees). — One Alexander, 2 Rareripe (Yellow), 2 
Early Crawford, 4 Late Crawford, 1 Stephens Rareripe. 

Cherries (5 trees). — Two Early Richmond, 2 Black Tartarian, 
1 Allen. 

Plums (5 trees). — Two Green Gage, 2 Lombard, 1 Willard. 

Pears (5 trees). — Two Bartlett, 1 Duchess, 1 Kieffer, 1 Seckel. 

Quinces. — Five Champion. 

Grapes (50 vines). — Twenty-five Concord, 10 Niagara, 15 
Brighton. 

Raspberries (70 bushes). — Twenty-five Gregg, 10 Marlboro, 25 
Cuthbert, 10 Golden Queen. 

Blackberries (50 bushes). — Twenty-five Agawam, 25 Taylor. 

Currants (45 bushes). — Twenty-five Wilder, 10 White Grapes, 10 
Champion. 

Gooseberries (30 bushes). — Ten Downing, 10 Industry, 10 Co- 
lumbus. 

Strawberries (200 plants). — One hundred Brandywine, 100 
Gandy. 

2. Care of the Fruit Garden 

Cultivation. — The successful fruit garden must at all 
times be kept free from weeds, and all vines, bushes, shrubs 
and young trees be cultivated the same as any other crop. 
To allow them to become choked with weeds or bound by 
sod is to invite failure. 

Mulching with coarse manure will serve the double pur- 
pose of helping to keep down the weeds and conserving 
the moisture. Care must be taken not to pack such a 
heavy coating over the roots as to deprive them of fresh 
air. Straw instead of manure should be used for the straw- 
berry bed. 



184 AGRICULTURE 

Planting. — In the North all planting should be done in 

the spring; and as early as the ground can be worked. The 
plant should be exposed to the air as little as possible be- 
tween the time of taking up and resetting. The roots 
should be full and plentiful, and all broken or injured por- 
tions cut away. In case a good supply of roots can not be 
obtained, the top should be cut back to correspond with the 
roots remaining. Unless this is done the growth will be 
greatly retarded, even if the plant does not die. 

The holes in which the plants are to be set should be 
sufficiently large that the roots can be spread out in their 
natural form, and not bent or cramped. The earth should 
be loosened a number of inches below where the roots are 
to rest. The rich top soil should be used to pack about the 
roots, being thoroughly tramped to insure contact with every 
part of the root fibers. The plant should stand in its new 
position an inch or two deeper than in the nursery. 

Pruning. — All garden fruits need pruning. This is 
for the purpose (1) of favoring the growth of sturdy 
trunks or stems, (2) removing the non-fruit-bearing parts 
so that the strength of the plant may go to the production 
of fruit, and (3) relieving the plant of old and useless 
stems and branches that no longer bear fruit. 

The time and method of pruning different plants de- 
pend on their habits of growth and fruit-bearing, which 
must be known by the gardener. All cuts should leave a 
clean smooth surface, with no tearing of the bark or other 
injury. 

Apples and Pears throw out in each season's growth 
short shoots or "spurs" from the sides of the branches that 
are one year or more old. It is on these spurs that the next 
year's fruit is grown. All pruning after the bearing age 
has been reached must be done with care not to trim back 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 185 

the spur-bearing branches to such an extent as to Hmit the 
crop. Pruning may be done at any time after the bearing 
season and before the new growth starts. 

Peaches are borne directly on the wood of the pre- 
ceding year's growth, and the branches may be headed in as 
much as required to limit the amount of fruit produced 
by the tree. 

Grapes are borne on new shoots thrown out in the 
spring from the canes, or small side branches of the pre- 
ceding season. Old wood is therefore of little value, and 
grapes will stand severe pruning. There are many differ- 
ent systems of pruning in use based on the form of the 
vine desired. 

Raspberries and blackberries both produce their fruit 
on short shoots thrown out by the canes of the previous 
year's growth. The bushes may be cut back in the fall 
or early spring, and all old wood past the best bearing 
age removed. 

Currants and gooseberries grow fruit on both old and 
new wood, the blossoms appearing in the axils of the shoots. 
All wood three years of age should be cut away. 

Strawberries grow their fruit chiefly on the newer 
plants. The most fruitful plants are those only one year 
old. Plants over two years old do not produce enough 
to pay and should be rooted out to give place for new ones. 

3. Enemies of the Fruit Garden 

The fruit garden is prey to a variety of insect and 
other enemies. Unless the owner is willing to give time 
and attention to combating these pests there is little use 
to attempt fruit raising, for it is sure to be a failure. 
Spraying with some form of fungicide or insecticide is the 
only means of controlling them, and no one mixture will 
serve for all purposes. 



186 



AGRICULTURE 



Insect enemies. — The insect enemies of the fruit gar- 
den are of two types : the biting insects, or those that actu- 
ally eat portions of the plant ; such as the larvae of the 
codling-moth ; and the sucking insects, or those that pierce 
the fruit, leaves, or bark with sharp beaks or bristles, and 
live off the juices of the plant. The latter group includes 
various plant bugs, lice and scale insects. 

In general, the biting insects can be destroyed by spray- 




Apple clusters, on the left, with calyx lobes spread and in good 
condition for spraying; on the right, with calyx lobes closed 
and too late for effective spraying. 

ing with some poison such as the arsenical compounds, 
which, if eaten, will kill them. The sucking insects can not 
be destroyed in this way, since the poison does not penetrate 
into the plant tissues whence they draw their food. For 
this group it is necessary to use some preparation that will 
either act on their bodies as a caustic, or that will smother 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 



187 



them by closing their breathing pores, or that will fill the 
air with poisonous fumes. 

Fungous enemies. — Almost every kind of garden 
fruit is a prey to one or more parasitic enemies in the form 




Two common defects of apples. The codling moth causes 
greater loss to many apple growers than all other insects com- 
bined, despite the fact that this pest can be controlled by- 
proper spraying. 



188 AGRICULTURE 

of growths on fruit, foliage or branches. For these pests 
sprays are used that are fatal to the parasite but not in- 
jurious to the plant. 

Scab, rust, rot, blight and mildew are examples of 
fungous enemies. In some cases the one variety attacks 
several different garden fruits, thus allowing the same 
spraying mixture to be used on all the various crops. In 
other cases, different fungicide compounds must be employed 
for the different fruits. 

Spraying. — The composition of some of the different 
spraying mixtures is described in Chapter XIII. It is evident 
from the nature of the insects and diseases attacking fruit 
that no one remedy will serve all purposes. Apples, plums, 
peaches, pears and cherries are the special target of a wide 
range of insects and fungi. These plants will need several 
sprayings, using different insecticides and fungicides ac- 
cording to the pest threatening. Every fruit gardener must 
understand the nature and use of the required compounds. 

All fruit trees should be treated with a dormant spray, 
applied some time during the dormant season, usually about 
March. The object is to kill the various scale insects and 
mites which winter on the tree. Bordeaux mixture or lime- 
sulphur solution is effective. Bordeaux should not be used 
on plums or peaches. 

A second spraying should be applied just after the leaf 
buds burst, but before the blossoms open. The mixture 
may be a combination of lime-sulphur or Bordeaux and 
arsenate of lead. This is to destroy the curcnlio, scab, leaf 
blight and similar enemies. 

Apples should be given their third spraying immediately 
after the petals fall, but before the calyx tubes close. The 
chief purpose of this application is to destroy the codling- 
moth, which is responsible for most of our wormy apples. 
The same mixture may be used as in the second spraying. 




Nest and larva? of the apple-tree tent cateiiiillar. 



190 



AGRICULTURE 



Apples should be sprayed again several weeks after the pet- 
als fall, and at least once more during the season, probably 
in July, in all regions where the enemies are troublesome. 




Yellow-necked caterpillars feeding. The cat- 
erpillar at the top shows characteristic pose 
when disturbed. 



Pears should receive their third spraying just before 
the blossoms open, another as the petals fall, and a final 
spraying several weeks later. Peaches, plums and cher- 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 191 

ries must also receive several sprayings if the crop is to be 
free from zvorms, blight, rot and other troubles that threaten 
the final success of the crop. 

Spraying machines. — While it seems that a great deal 
of trouble and expense are required to protect the farm 
fruit garden, it is really less than it appears if a good 
spraying pump is used. There are many different kinds 
of these, each suited for particular needs, and none is ex- 
pensive. Whatever make of pump is secured, it must be 
powerful enough to drive a fine spray to every part of the 
largest tree. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Compare the diagram of your fruit garden vv^ith the 
plan shown on page 181. Which is the better plan as to 
arrangement ? Are any fruits shown in the plan which you 
do not have? Could they be successfully grown in your 
region ? Do you have any not shown in the plan ? 

2. Compare the proportion of space given each fruit in 
the plan with the proportion shown in your diagram. What 
is your conclusion ? Compare the proportion of space given 
each fruit in the different gardens represented at the school, 
and determine which garden is best balanced. 

3. Make a list of all your home fruit by varieties, con- 
structing a table similar to that on page 183. 

4. Is your fruit garden well cultivated and free from 
weeds? Are any of the plants sod-bound? Is mulching 
used ? 

5. Learn to identify surely and quickly each of the 
different fruit trees, shrubs and vines, either when in 
foliage or dormant. 

6. Go with your teacher or some expert gardener to 
some near-by fruit garden and learn how and why the dif- 
ferent plants should be pruned. Is your home garden well 
pruned ? 

7. Bring specimen branches or stems of the different 
garden fruits and show where and how the fruit is borne. 
Make a drawing in each case. 

8. Is your fruit garden regularly sprayed? What kind 




Nest of the fall web worm. The caterpillars work inside the 
web aud uut upon the outsiclH as do the tent caterpillars. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 



193 



of spray machine is used? What mixtures? What ene- 
mies are most troublesome in the case of each fruit? 

9. Make a collection of all the different insects and 
fungi you can find that damage fruit in your region. Learn 
to identify each. What spray is fatal to each? 

10. Estimate the value of the fruit produced in your 




The Ilium curculio on a young peacli. 



home garden last year. Did it pay for the ground occu- 
pied and the time used? How can the amount of fruit and 
its net profit be increased? What are your plans in this 
direction for next year? 

11. Show how to keep a debit and credit account of 
the fruit garden. It should contain the receipts and expen- 
ditures for at least three varieties of fruits. 




Baldwiu apple badly iufesled with San Jose scale. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 



195 



12. Show upon the map the different fruit belts and 
estimate from the crop census records the crop production 
for the past season in the various states. Locate upon 
the map the citrus fruit states, the apple states, the small 
fruit states. 




Twig showing appearance of 
leaves infested with apple aphis. 

4. Frtiit Demonstrations 

The demonstrations in connection with the fruit studies 
serve a double purpose: (1) to arouse definite interest of 
the school and community in fruit as a profitable crop for 
the farm and home, and (2) to show the relation of fruit 
to the daily diet. 




Peaches destroyed by brown rot, showing gray masses of 
spores of the fungus. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 197 

1. Demonstrate how to can the various kinds of local 
fruits by use of the cold pack method. 

2. Demonstrate and explain the use of other methods 
of canning fruits, and of glass and tin containers for the 
canning of surplus fruits of the garden and orchard. 

3. The proper method of scalding, blanching, paring, 
coring, stemming, hulling and seeding of various kinds of 
fruits. 

4. Show how to grade and crate the various kinds of 
fruits for the market, and the use of parcel-post packs. 
Show how to prepare exhibits of fruit for fairs, club fes- 
tivals, educational meetings, etc. 

5. Fruit Play Contests 

Among the most interesting play contests in connection 
with the agricultural and home economic work of the school 
are the fruit play contests. These contests will not only 
serve to create interest in the study, but will actually teach 
valuable lessons on how to do the important things related 
to the project. 

1. Fruit judging contest. 

2. Paring, seeding and stemming contests. 

3. Oral recipe giving contest. 

4. Fruit pie guessing games. 

5. Spelling contest, in which the fruit terms, names 
and related interests are used. 

6. Apple coring and paring contest. This is especially 
valuable in teaching skill in the handling of knives, and in 
encouraging practise in rapid paring and coring without 
too much loss of food material. 

7. Apple or fruit races. These can be conducted very 
much on the same plan as potato and egg races, which are 
known to all. 




stages of the codling moth; (a) moth; (,b) larva; (c) pupa 
in its cocoou. 




Califoruia grapes and packing for shipping. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 199 

8. Variety naming contests. 

9. Fruit art contests, in which the contestants are to 
draw free hand on paper the various types of fruit placed 
before them. 

10. Fruit grading and packing contests, including prep- 
aration of parcel-post packages. 




San Jose Scale. 

(1) Natural size on apple twig. (2) Scales on rose stem en- 
larged. (3) Scales on apple twig, much enlarged, (a) Adult 
female scales; (b) male scales; (c) young developing scales. 
Ttie depressed ring around the raised central dot is a charac- 
teristic of this species. 



6. Fruit Club Project 

The organization of a fruit club is not only possible but 
interesting and practical. This is illustrated in connection 
with apple clubs, in which each member takes charge for 
the entire season of a row or square of ten or twelve apple 
trees, keeps records, does all the pruning, spraying, plow- 
ing, trimming, picking, grading, crating, marketing, and 



200 AGRICULTURE 

canning of windfall apples. In some cases it may be ad- 
visable for the class to take entire charge of an orchard and 
apportion it into as many parts as there are members. The 
basis of award may be as follows : 

1. Management of orchard 20 

2. Condition of the orchard at close of season 20 

3. Net profit on investment 20 

4. Exhibit and quality of both fresh and canned products 20 

5. Crop report and story of season's work 20 

Total score 100 

The above score can be modified to suit club projects 
with strawberries, peaches, pears and citrus fruits. 

The fall fruit and vegetable festival held in connection 
with the school for the entire community should be one 
of the most interesting events of the year. At this time the 
demonstrations, exhibits and play contests can be success- 
fully carried out with definite educational and recreative 
value to all. 



CHAPTER XII 
THE TOMATO 

TOMATOES are becoming so important a garden and 
truck crop as to deserve special mention. They came 
originally from tropical regions, where the vines bear fruit 
all the year. 

1. Importance of the Tomato 

For a long time tomatoes were not known to have value 
as a food, but were thought to be poison. The plants were 
then cultivated for ornamental purposes and were known 
as "love apples." 

Uses now as food. — The chief value of tomatoes as a 
food lies in the sugars and protein, and in a stimulating 
effect on digestion. More than three hundred recipes have 
been worked out in preparing tomatoes for our tables. Many 
more people than now use tomatoes as a part of their diet 
will do so when they come to know more of their value. 

Tomato growing states. — Tomatoes will grow suc- 
cessfully in almost every part of the United States. Mary- 
land is one of the largest tomato producing states, and has 
the largest number of tomato canning factories. New 
Jersey, Indiana, California and Delaware rank next. 

Hundreds of thousands of cases of tomatoes are now 
being grown and canned annually by the girls of the can- 
ning clubs. It is estimated that, after paying the expenses 
of raising her crop, a club girl from ten to eighteen years 
of age can make from ten dollars to twenty-five dollars a 
day for the time she puts in canning the crop for market 

201 



202 AGRICULTURE 



2. Varieties 



In selecting the varieties for the home garden the length 
of season, quality, yield and appearance of the crop should 
be considered. 

Early varieties. — There are a great many varieties 
from which to select. Among the favorites are : Earliana, 
Chalk's Early Jewell, Bonnie Best, Globe and Prince's 
June Pink. 

Late varieties. — The chief late varieties are : Stone, 
Matchless, Beauty, Ponderosa, Dzuarf Stone, Acme and 
Trophy. 

3. Raising the Crop 

Where the seasons are short it is necessary to start the 
plants in a hotbed and transplant them when all danger of 
frost is past. In northernmost states it is well to use the 
cold-frame for hardening off the plants before setting in 
the garden. This process strengthens the plants and ena- 
bles the crop to mature before freezing in the fall. 

Transplanting. — Have the seed bed well prepared by- 
deep spading or plowing, thoroughly manured with a well- 
rotted barnyard manure, and well pulverized. The plat 
should be marked off in rows three or four feet apart, accord- 
ing to the variety of tomatoes grow^n. The large hardy vari- 
eties will require a distance of four feet each way, while 
the dwarf varieties will do well three feet apart. In trans- 
planting, have the holes opened up, remove the plants from 
cold-frames or hotbed without injuring the roots. Allow 
enough soil to accompany the roots so that the plant may 
go on growing without pause. 

Pruning. — Much of the success of the tomato crop 
depends on proper pruning and staking. Tomatoes are 
especially liable to fungous and bacterial diseases, and there- 
fore need to be kept from the ground and given an abun- 



THE TOMATO 



203 



dance of sunlight. The vines should be pruned at the time 
of transplanting or afterward by pinching- off the suckers, 




A plot of tomatoes showing the result of careful pruning and 
, staking. 

or secondary leaf buds, found in the axils of the leaves. 
This will cause the plant to grow tall instead of spreading 
out. A'fter each vine has developed four or five clusters 



204 AGRICULTURE 

of fruit the top bud should be pinched off to prevent the 
plant from growing too high. 

Staking. — The method of pruning described requires 
staking to support the vines. For this purpose a single; 
stake may be driven beside each hill, or a continuous meshed 
wire or other form of fence may be used. Soft twine or 
cloth should be used for tying the vines. No loop should 
be drawn tightly around the plant. 

Spraying. — ^The tomato vines should be thoroughly 
sprayed with Bordeaux mixture several times during the 
season. The first spray should be given about the time the 
first fruit begins to form, or even earlier if the season is 
warm and moist. This will prevent the plants from being 
attacked by mildew. Remove at once any tomatoes that 
show a brownish discolored area about the blossom end. 
This will prevent the spread of disease. 

4. Harvesting and Marketing 

Gathering the crop. — ^Tomatoes should be gathered 
when ripe and firm and should be handled with great care 
to prevent crushing or bruising. For marketing they should 
be graded in three classes, prime, medium and culls. The 
more nearly uniform in size, shape and color, the more will 
the market ofifer for the product. 

Canning. — Tomatoes for canning purposes should be 
thoroughly ripened and be of the deep red color, smooth 
and firm. They should be canned whole so as to permit 
the use of the tomato in as many different ways as is pos- 
sible with the fresh tomato. Water should not be added 
to jars or cans when canning tomatoes, as this will dilute 
iheir flavor, destroy their color, and injure their purity. 
The culls may be put up for such purposes as puree, for 
tomato soup, breaded tom>itoes, etc. 




An Iowa club girl showing how to prune the tomato plant by 
pinching ofiE the axillary bud. 



206 AGRICULTURE 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Write a brief history of the tomato. Name the 
different uses to which the tomato is put in your own home. 
Can you suggest still other uses? Why should tomatoes 
be canned whole? 

2. How many quarts of tomatoes did you raise and 
can last year? What kind of soil is best adapted to the 
culture of tomatoes? 

3. Make a drawing of a hotbed, giving all dimensions. 
Write out full directions for preparing and filling and car- 
ing for the bed. 

4. Show how to keep a bookkeeping account of one- 
tenth acre of tomatoes, covering items of cost and cash 
received from the time of preparing the hotbed to the can- 
ning and marketing of the crop. 

5. Show on the map of the United States the greatest 
tomato states, and the approximate location of the terri- 
tory in which the early varieties should be grown and the 
territory in which the late varieties should be grown. 

5. Demonstrations with the Tomato 

1. Demonstrate how to scald, pare and core the to- 
mato. 

2. How to can tomatoes. 

3. How to grade and crate for parcel-post shipment, 
prime grade tomatoes. 

4. Demonstrate how to use the tomato in the home by 
preparing certain dishes. 

5. Demonstrate the proper method of pruning and 
staking of tomato vines. 

6. Other demonstrations of cultivation, hoeing, spray- 
ing, thinning, etc., can be undertaken in connection with 
tomato culture. 

6. Tomato Play Contests 

1. Tomato race, conducted on very much the same plan 
as the potato race. 



THE TOMATO 207 

2. Tomato judging contest, 

3. Tomato canning contest. 

4. Can labeling contest.. 

5. Essay writing contest on the origin and history of 
the tomato. 

6. Tomato problems contest. 

7. Tomato recipe giving contest. 

7. Tomato Club Project 

One of the most interesting club projects is the grow- 
ing of a club plat of tomatoes and studying all of the inter- 
esting lessons from the selection of the variety of seed, 
through the hotbed, cold-frame, transplanting, pruning, 
staking, cultivating, gathering, grading, crating, marketing 
and home canning of the surplus product. To this can be 
added finally the working up of the product into various 
dishes for the table. For the rural communities one-tenth 
of an acre should be the acreage basis, and for city and 
village work, not less than a square rod. 

The basis of award should be : 

1. Yield, total pounds of tomatoes 20 

2. Net profit on investment 20 

3. Quality, both fresh and canned products 20 

4. Variety of canned and prepared tomato products on 

exhibit 20 

5. Cost record and story "How I Made, Canned and Mar- 
keted My Crop" 20 

Total score— ~ 100 



U 



CHAPTER XIII 
GARDEN AND ORCHARD SPRAYS 

POISONOUS sprays for the destruction of insect and 
fungi of garden and orchards have come into general 
use. Upon their successful application often depends the 
value of the crop, both as to quantity and quality. Not in- 
frequently an entire failure of yield results from the attack 
of these pests when they are not destroyed in time. Wormy 
and scabby apples, rotting peaches and plums, blighted ber- 
ries and diseased vegetables prove the necessity for somo 
means of stopping their ravages. 

The purpose of the two classes of mixtures, fungicides 
and insecticides, is indicated by the name applied; the cide 
in each word means to kill. Only the more important and 
common fungicides and insecticides will be described here 

1. Bordeaux Mixture 

Bordeaux mixture is one of the most successful and 
widely used fungicides. Used at proper strength it is harm- 
less to most plants, though it has been found injurious to 
some, especially plums and, in less degree, peaches. It will 
.'ilso stain foliage and fruit upon which it falls. 

Composition. — Bordeaux mixture is made when 
needed, of copper sidphate (blue vitriol) and lime. The 
strength may be varied, depending on the required use. The 
proportions most generally accepted are : 

4 pounds of copper sulphate. 
6 pounds of fresh lime, 
SO gallons of water. 

208 




Duchess apples, showing results of punctures of the plum cur- 
culio. This injury could have been saved by proper spraying. 




Spraying apple trees. 



210 AGRICULTURE 

The copper sulphate is the active agent in killing the 
fungi, while the lime prevents injury to the plant. Besides 
this "4-6-50" mixture, other formulas frequently used are 
of the proportions 4-4-50, and 5-5-50. 

Making the mixture. — When but a small amount of 
spraying is to be done the only equipment required for 
making Bordeaux mixture is a fifty-gallon barrel, two twen- 
ty-five gallon tubs, buckets and a fine-mesh sieve. 

Fill one of the smaller tubs with water, and suspend 
just below the surface four pounds of copper sulphate in a 
loose bag, giving it time to dissolve. This will require 
about an hour, though the process can be hastened by using 
hot water. Slake six pounds of lime in the other tub, us- 
ing hot water and reducing the lime to a paste. When the 
lime has cooled, dilute to twenty-five gallons. 

Now stir the contents of the tubs, and pour bucketfuls 
of each mixture simultaneously through a sieve into the 
larger barrel, making sure that the streams mix. Stir well, 
and the compound is ready for the spraying machine. 

Use. — The amount needed for a garden can be judged 
from the fact that a tree in full leaf and having a spread 
of twenty-five feet will require about four gallons of the 
mixture. Most beginnners use too little, and hence fail to 
get the best results. 

Bordeaux mixture is not effective against insects. If, 
however, arsenate of lead in the proportion of two pounds to 
each barrel of the mixture be combined with it, the com- 
pound will serve as a check on both insests and fungous 
diseases. Scab, apple blotch, bitter rot, wilt, mildew and 
brown rot are controlled by Bordeaux mixture. 

2. Lime-Stdphur Mixture 
The lime-sulphur mixture, besides being an insecticide 
for certain plant insects, is also a fungicide ocrving the same 



GARDEN AND ORCHARD SPRAYS 2U 

general purpose as Bordeaux mixture. It has the advantage 
of not injuring certain plants, such as peaches and plums, 
to which Bordeaux mixture is not adapted. Some fruit 
growers are coming to employ it as their principal fungi- 
cide. 

Composition. — The strength of the mixture may- 
vary, the proportion of the ingredients commonly being : 

8 pounds of flour of sulphur. 
8 pounds of fresh lime. 
SO gallons of water. 

Making the mixture. — The lime-sulphur compound 
may be made by several different processes, one of the sim- 
plest of which is the self-boiling process. To make the self- 
boiled mixture, put eight pounds of lime to slake, and while 
the slaking process is going on, sift over the lime eight 
pounds of finely powdered sulphur. Stir constantly, adding 
water until a thin paste is secured. Dilute to fifty gallons, 
and strain before using. 

Lime-sulphur- may be also bought ready for use. Al- 
though it costs slightly more -than the home-made product, 
the time saved makes the. commercial form cheaper if but 
a small amount is required. 

Use.— Lime-sulphur controls scale insects and cur- 
culio, as well as such fungous diseases as scab, leaf curl, 
brown rot, etc. Arsenate of lead may be used with this 
mixture also. 

3. Arsenate of Lead 

Arsenate of lead is one of the most important stomach 
insecticides known, and has largely taken the place of Paris 
green with most fruit growers. It seems to be palatable 
to all garden insects. It adheres well to foliage, and hence 
does not easily wash off in showers as does Paris green. It 
will not injure plants no matter how strong the solutic-i. 



212 AGRICULTURE 

And it also acts as a fungicide, especially when mixed with 
lime-sulphur. 

Composition. — Arsenate of lead is easily compounded, 
the usual formula being: 

22 ounces acetate of lead dissolved in 2 gallons of warm 

water. 
8 ounces arsenate of soda dissolved in 1 gallon of water. 
(Use wooden pail in each case.) 

The two solutions are now poured together and diluted 
with water to make a mixture of fifty gallons, when it is 
ready to spray. 

Arsenate of lead may also be procured in the form of 
a paste ready to dilute for the spraying machine. Three 
pounds of the commercial paste will make fifty gallons of 
spray. It will hardly pay to go to the trouble of mixing the 
compound at home, since the ready-made product usually 
costs no more than the ingredients for making the mixture. 

Use. — The arsenate of lead mixture may be used 
either alone or with fungicides for destroying nearly the 
whole range of biting insects attacking garden fruits. It 
has proved of the greatest service, especially in the spraying 
of apples. 

4. Paris Green 

Paris green is one of the oldest and best known of the 
insect poisons. Several thousand tons are used each year 
for this purpose. 

Composition. — Paris green is often prepared for 
spraying by simply dissolving from four to eight ounces in 
fifty gallons of water. The standard formula, however, is: 

4 ounces of Paris green. 
% pound of lime. 
50 gallons of water. 

The lime is to be slaked and mixed with the water. The 




Ci'uii I'ruin iuur ^iirayed peach trees; one basket vi scabby fruit 
at the left ; the remainder souud. 




Crop from four uusprayed peach trees. Sound fruit in three 
baskets at left ; the remainder scabby. 



214 AGRICULTURE 

Paris green is mixed to paste form in a small quantity of 
water, and then added to the water. 

Use. — Paris green may be used in combination with 
the Bordeaux mixture, but not with Hme-sulphur. When 
mixing it with Bordeaux, the Paris green should be com- 
bined with the dikited lime before it is brought in contact 
with the copper sulphate. 

5, Kerosene Emulsion 

Kerosene is one of the best of contact insecticides. A 
small particle of it on any part of the body means certain 
death to any insect. Pure kerosene, however, will injure 
most plants, and hence must be used in a mixture. The 
best of these is what is known as kerosene emulsion. 

Composition. — The formula for the mixture commonly 
used is: 

Vz pound hard laundry soap shaved fine. 

1 gallon of soft water. ' 

2 gallons of kerosene. 

Making the emulsion. — One of the advantages in the 
use of this spray is the ease with which it can be made. 
Dissolve the soap in one gallon of boiling water; remove 
from the stove and at once add two gallons of kerosene. 
Stir while cooling until a soft, butter-like mass is obtained. 
Dilute one part of this stock solution with ten or twelve 
parts of water as needed for spraying. 

Use. — Kerosene emulsion may be used on all kinds 
of tender foliage without injury. It will control the vari- 
ous kinds of plant lice, slugs, etc. 

!,,__ 6. The Resin-Lime Mixture 

One of the difficulties in using many of the insecticides 
and fungicides is that they do not adhere well to the smooth 
foliage of the plants. The resin-lime mixture is often used 



GARDEN AND ORCHARD SPRAYS 215 

in combination with other compounds to insure their stick- 
ing to the plants until they have done their work. 
Composition. — The formula employed is : 

5 pounds of pulverized resin. 

1 pound of concentrated lie. 

1 pint of fish or some other animal oil. 

5 gallons of water. 

This mixture is the stock solution, which is still further 
diluted as used. 

Making the mixture. — The oil, resin and one gallon 
of cold water are to be put into an iron kettle and heated 
until the resin softens. Add the lime and stir well. Then 
add four gallons of hot water and boil until a little mixed 
with cold water gives a clear amber-colored liquid. Add 
water to make up for what has boiled away, making five 
gallons of the compound. 

Use. — This spray, besides causing other mixtures to 
adhere to the foliage of plants, is itself an excellent contact 
insecticide. Its principal effect is through making a smoth- 
ering coating over the body of the insect. It is used in 
some regions as a dormant wash for the control of scale 
insects. When used with Paris green or Bordeaux, two 
gallons of resin-lime compound are mixed with eight gal- 
lons of water, and this added to forty gallons of the spray. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Copper sulphate costs from seven to ten cents a 
pound, and lime, when bought in small quantities, about 
fifteen cents a pound. What, then, should be the outlay in 
making fifty gallons of Bordeaux mixture? What would it 
cost for material to spray ten apple trees averaging a 
twenty-five-foot spread ? 

2. Under the direction of the teacher and with great 
care in handling both before and after mixing, let the class 



216 AGRICULTURE 

join in making up a Bordeaux mixture, substituting one 
ounce for each pound of the ingredients in the formula, and 
a corresponding amount of water. What is the color of the 
compound ? Will it keep indefinitely if covered to save evap- 
oration? 

3. Make a lime-sulphur mixture, reducing the amounts 
as before to one ounce for each pound of ingredients. 

4. Make up a kerosene emulsion, using one pint of 
kerosene and a corresponding amount of other ingredients. 

5. Secure catalogs describing spraying machines, ex- 
amine the different makes, and decide which is best for 
the use you would require in your home garden and or- 
chard. If uncertain write your state agricultural college 
about it. 



CHAPTER XIV 

HOME CANNING OF FRUITS AND VEGE- 
TABLES 

IT is both practicable and economical to can the surplus 
vegetables, fruit, sweet corn, greens and other such prod- 
ucts that commonly go to waste in the orchard, field and 
garden. 

1. Home Canned Products and the Table 

When the farm home has learned to can its surplus 
fresh food products, then the family can have a balanced 
ration every day in the year, and the cost of living will be 
greatly reduced. 

Home canned foods. — The average farm family- 
should plan to have for table use from the home-canned 
supply 0)ie quart of vegetables, one quart of fruit and one 
quart of greens for every day in the year when these foods 
are not available in the garden. The ration based on these 
foods and supplemented by meats is better balanced and less 
expensive than one based on meats with a scarcity ot fruits 
and vegetables. Such a system will have a tendency to cut 
down both the doctor's bills and the grocery bills, and will 
furnish a more palatable diet. 

The elimination of waste. — The importance of home 
canning is still more fully realized when we stop to con- 
sider that in most states probably one-half of all the fruit 
and vegetables raised are allowed to go to waste. They are 
not needed for immediate consumption, and methods of 
grading, crating and marketing are not understood. Home 
canning will save all of this waste. 

217 



218 AGRICULTURE 

Successful canning not difficult. — By following simple 
recipes and time-tables for sterilization, even children can 
successfully can anything that grows in the garden, field or 
orchard. Once canned the product has a money value, and 
'>s as standard in the market as sugar or nails. 

Canning fruits. — The list of receipts and time-tables 
given in this chapter are made to be used in connection 
with the usual home canning utensils, and with four distinct 
types of canning outfits. Such outfits are not expensive. 
They can be bought all the way from eighty-nine cents 
up to twenty dollars, depending on type and size. All kinds 
of glass jars, bottles and tin cans commonly used in the old 
methods of canning can be used with these newer devices. 
(Write for Farmers' Bulletin 521 and other circulars of 
instruction on canning, for description of canning outfits, 
and full directions for their use.) 

2. Canning Recipes for Fruits and I'egetables 

These recipes have been carefully planned and tested by 
experts, and should be followed with great care if the best 
results are to be obtained. 

Tomatoes. — Grade for ripeness, size and quality. 
Scald to loosen skins. Dip in cold water ; remove skins ; 
pack whole. Fill with tomatoes only and add 1 level tea- 
spoonful salt to each quart. Place rubber and partially seal. 
(Cap and tip tins.) Sterilize thirty-two minutes in hot- 
water bath, twenty-two minutes in water-seal outfit, fifteen 
minutes under five pounds of steam, or ten minutes in 
pressure cooker. Remove jars, tighten covers, and invert 
to cool. 

Strawberries. — 1, Can fresh, sound berries same day 
picked. Hull (twist berries ofif hull) ; place in strainer, pour 
water over to cleanse. Pack in jar or tin without crushing. 
Pour hot sirup over berries to top. Place rubber and top 
and partially tighten. (Cap and tip tins.) Sterilize sixteen 




A practical canning kitchen. 




Two types of canning outfits; (a) the water seal; (b) the 
steam pressure type, used by a canning club girl. 



220 AGRICULTURE 

minutes in hot-water bath, 6 minutes under 5 pounds of 
steam, 10 minutes in water-seal outfit, or 5 minutes in 
pressure cooker. 

(Sirup: 1^ qts. sugar to 1 qt. water, boiled to medium 
thick.) 

Strawberries. — 2. Same as above except sirup. Sirup : 
Crush berries for 1 quart natural juice, add 1 qt. sugar,'boi] 
to medium thick sirup. Add as in No. 1. 

Strawberries. — Sun preserves. Select ripe, firm ber- 
ries. Pick and preserve same day. Hull and rinse as in 
No. 1. Place in shallow platter in single layer ; sprinkle 
sugar over them ; pour over them 40-degree sirup (same as 
No. 1 boiled thicker). Cover with glass dish or window 
pane. Allow to cook in hot sun 6 to 10 hours. Pack in 
glasses, jars, or cups; tie paper over tops. (Paraffin or 
sealing wax.) Keep in cool dry place. 

Carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, etc. — Scald from 1 
to 5 minutes in boiling water. Plunge in cold water. Re- 
move skins ; pack whole or sliced ; add boiling v/ater and 
1 level teaspoonful salt to each quart. Place rubber and top 
and partially tighten. (Cap and tip tins.) Process IjA 
hours in hot-water bath, 1 hour, 15 minutes in water seal, 1 
hour under 5 pounds of steam, or 30 minutes in pressure 
cooker. 

Eggplant. — Scald 5 minutes in slightly salt boiling 
w^ater ; plunge in cold water ; remove skins. Slice cross- 
wise and pack ; add boiling water and 1 level teaspoonful 
of salt to each pint. Place rubber and top and partially 
tighten. (Cap and tin tins.) Process 1 hour in hot-water 
bath, 50 minutes in water-seal outfit, 45, in 5 lbs. of steam 
pressure, or 30 minutes in pressure cooker. Remove 
jars, tighten covers, and invert to cool. 

Sweet corn, on the cob. — Blanch in boiling water 10 
minutes, plunge quickly in cold water. Pack, alternating 
butts and tips ; add boiling water and 1 level teaspoonful of 
salt to each quart. Place rubber and top and partially 
tighten. (Cap and tip tins.) Process 180 to 240 minutes 
in hot-water bath, l^/^ hours water-seal outfit, 60 minutes 
under 5 pounds of steam, or 45 minutes in pressure cooker. 
Remove jars, tighten covers, invert and cool. 

Sweet corn, off the cob. — Same as above, except cut 



HOME CANNING 221 

from cob after blanching. Pack and fill jars with boiling 
water, adding 1 level teaspoonful salt to each pint. Pro- 
ceed as above. 

Peas, beans, etc. — Blanch 3 -minutes in boiling 
water ; plunge in cold water. Pack and add boiling water 
and 1 level teaspoonful salt to each quart. Place rubber 
and top and partially tighten top. (Cap and tip tins.) 
Process V/2 hours in hot-water bath, 1 hour -in water-seal, 
1 hour under 5 pounds of steam, or 35 minutes in pressure 
cooker. 

Chards, beets, turnips, etc. — Scald 1 to 6 minutes in 
boiling water; plunge in cold water, remove skins. Slice 
and pack ; add boiling water and 1 level teaspoonful salt for 
each pint. Place rubber and top and partially tighten. 
(Cap and tip tins.) Process V/z hours in hot-water bath, 
1^ hours in water-seal, 1 hour under 5 pounds of steam, 
or 40 minutes in pressure cooker. Remove jars, tighten 
covers, and invert to cool. 

Greens, (spinach, dandelion, mustard, beet tops, etc.) 
— Blanch in boiling water 10 minutes, plunge in cold water. 
Cut ready for table use. Process 10 minutes in open ket- 
tle to shrink ; season with slice of bacon or chips of dried 
beef for each pint. Pack, add hot water and a little salt to 
each quart. Place rubber and top and partially tighten. 
(Cap and tip tins.) Process 60 minutes in hot-water bath 
or water-seal outfit, 40 minutes tmder 5 pounds of steam, 
30 minutes in pressure cooker. Remove, tighten covers, 
and invert to cool. 

It is always advisable to cook the greens a short time 
before packing in order to reduce the bulk. 

Windfall apples. — For the canning of whole apples 
select firm, not over-ripe apples. A great difference in the 
canned products will be noted in the different varieties of 
apples. The recipe is intended for firm and preferably tart 
varieties. Some varieties will require less time and some 
more. Experience will teach adjustment of time. 

Remove blemished, cut out core. Blanch for 2 minutes 
in boiling water; plunge in cold water. Pack in tin cans 
or glass jars and add just a little very thin sirup. Place 
rubber and top and partially tighten. (Cap and tip tins.) 
Process 20 minutes in hot-water bath, 15 minutes in water- 



222 AGRICULTURE 

seal, 10 minutes in steam pressure outfit, or 4 :ninutes in 
pressure cooker. Remove jars, tighten covers, and invert 
to cool. 

Windfall apples for pie filling. — Peel and core. Slice ; 
scald 1 minute in boiling water ; plunge in cold water. Pack 
in glass or tin, and add about one teacupful of hot, thin 
sirup to each quart. Place rubber and top, partially 
tighten. (Cap and tip tins.) Sterilize 16 minutes in hot- 
water bath, 12 minutes in water-seal outfit, 10 minutes un- 
der 5 pounds of steam, or 4 minutes in pressure cooker. 
Remove jars, tighten covers, invert to cool. 

Blanching. — After blanching plunge in cold water and 
pack quickly.* 

1. Blanch peas, beans, etc., 5 minutes. 

2. Blanch corn on cob, 5 to 15 minutes. 

3. Blanch pumpkin, squash, mangoes, about 5 minutes. 

4. Blanch okra, cabbage, sweet potatoes, 5 minutes. 

5. Blanch asparagus, spinach, kale, etc., 5 to 10 minutes. 

6. r lanch rhubarb, beet tops, etc., 1 to 3 minutes. 

7. Blanch or scald beets, carrots, turnips, etc., 6 min- 
utes. 

8. Scald tomatoes, plums, pears, etc., 1 to 2 minutes. 

9. Scald peaches, apricots, 1 to 2 minutes. 
Reasons. — Scalding: (1) To remove skins without 

loss of pulp; (2) to eliminate objectionable acids; (3) to 
arrest flow of coloring matter. 

Blanching. — (1) To eliminate objectionable acids; (2) 
to set coloring matter; (3) to make texture firm for ster- 
ilization. 

Cold Dip. — (1) To separate skin from pulp; (2) to set 
color bodies; (3) to render packing easier. 

3. Time Table for Home Canning of Foods 

To be followed in the use of the four different types of 
portable home canners. For altitudes of 4,000 feet or more 
above sea level, add about 20 per cent, or 25 per cent, more 
time to this schedule. 

* Cook greens, calibage. chard, etc., about 20 minutes before 
packing to reduce bulk. 



HOME CANNING 223 



Time Schedule for Canning. 
Products to be Canned. 



So 



£1, -^ 2° feS 



c^ -^^ ^* ^:; s^ 

«| fc=^ So £« 

' f ti I'm E C^ m- 

No o => [?"=! ^ " S j;^ 



Min. Min. Min. Alin. 

Apples 3 15 15 10 4 

Apricots ;j 15 12 10 6 

Asparagus 2 or 3 60 60 40 30 

Apple cider 2 or 3 20 15 12 6 

Beans, lima and string 2 or 3 120 90 60 30 

Blackberries, Dewberries 2 or 3 12 8 6 4 

Cherries, Peaches 2 15 12 10 5 

Corn, on or off cob 2 240 180 60 40 

Grapes, Pears, Plums 2 20 15 10 6 

Hominy 3 60 50 40 35 

Huckleberries 2 10 8 6 5 

Okra 2 or 3 60 60 40 35 

Okra and tomatoes combined-. 2 or 3 50 50 40 35 

Oysters 1 60 50 40 35 

Peas (field) 2 90 90 40 35 

Peas (garden or English) 2 90 60 40 35 

Pineapple 2 or 3 30 25 10 6 

Raspberries 2 or 3 15 10 6 4 

Sauerkraut 3 50 50 40 25 

Sausage 3 60 60 40 35 

Sweet potatoes 3 180 90 60 40 

Strawberries 3 12 10 8 5 

Succotash 2 or 3 60 60 40 30 

Tomatoes 2 or 3 32 22 10 6 

Tomatoes and corn 2 80 70 60 40 

Grape juice 2 15 15 10 5 

Quince 3 30 25 15 10 

Tomato juice 2 20 20 15 10 

Pumpkin 3 50 50 40 30 

Fish, Pork 2 200 200 120 60 

16 



224 



AGRICULTURE 



Time Schedule for Canning. 
Products to be Canned. 





£- 

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t.. 01 






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to 


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cSC 


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<u u S 




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Min. 


Min. 


Min. 


Min. 


3 


250 


240 


180 


40 


3 


30 


20 


10 


5 


3 


50 


40 


30 


20 


3 


90 


60 


40 


30 


3 


90 


60 


40 


30 


3 


25 


25 


15 


10 


3 


60 


60 


45 


30 



Chicken, beef 

Figs 

Squash 

Spinach 

Other greens _ 

Rhubard 

Beets 



PART III. SOIL 



CHAPTER XV 
NATURE OF SOIL 

IN our discussion of plants and crops we have constantly 
referred to the soil. What is soilf Whence does 
it come? What relation does it bear to plant life, and hence 
to our own lives ? Take a handful of "dirt" and crumble 
it between your fingers ; of what does it consist, what is 
its nature? 

1. Origin of the Soil 

Soil did not always exist as it is to-day. When the earth 
was young and the crust was forming there was no soil. 
There was only rock. And it is out of the weathering of 
this surface rock that the soil has come ; and the process is 
still going on whenever rock is exposed. Soil is but par- 
ticles of rock, to which has been added organic matter com- 
ing from the plants and animals that have lived on it or in it. 

The v^^eathering of rock. — Rock is made into soil by 
two different processes, disintegration and decomposition. 
By disintegration is meant the breaking up of rock into 
small particles without changing their nature. By decom- 
position is meant such breaking up by chemical action that 
the nature of the particles is changed. 

The chief agencies causing the disintegration of rocks 
are sudden changes of temperature and the action of frost. 

225 



226 AGRICULTURE 

When masses of rock are heated by the sun they expand; 
sudden cooling at night or from change of weather causes 
so rapid a contraction that they are rent asunder. Water 
freezing in crevices also constantly breaks masses of rock 
into smaller pieces. 

Rocks undergo decomposition largely through changes 
due to the action of chemicals carried in water. The min- 
eral substances in the rocks are dissolved, and new prod- 
ucts formed. 




A plowing contest. 

Surface and subsoil. — The terms soil and subsoil are 
often used to distinguish the top portion from the soil that 
lies underneath. The line between the dark humus-colored 
part and the lighter soil below is sometimes spoken of as the 
division between soil and subsoil. Another distinction made 
is to call all that lies below the depth of tillage subsoil. No 
such dividing line can be sharply drawn, however, as much 
organic matter is found below the humus line, and the depth 
of tillage does not mark a natural division in layers of the 



NATURE OF SOIL 227 

soil. Surface soil differs from subsoil chiefly in the organic 
matter it contains. 

2. Organic Matter in Soil 

. Examine carefully a lump of common field soil. Pul- 
verize it and spread it out on a paper. In addition to the 
grains of sand, silt and clay which represent the rock por- 
tions, note all the different organic particles, such as pieces 
of roots, fibers of plants, and parts of insects. Place it 
under a magnifier, and see whether you can make still fur- 
ther discoveries. 

Need of organic matter. — Although the rock particles 
make up far the greater part of the mass of the soil, or- 
ganic matter is of the highest importance to plants. Indeed, 
it is practically impossible to raise crops on soil lacking 
organic constituents. All the upper layers of ordinary soil 
contain from two to five per cent, of organic material, com- 
ing chiefly from the roots and stems of plants. 

Humus.— When vegetation decays on top of the 
ground it is really burned up as effectually as if put into a 
stove, only more slowly. The gases pass off into the air 
and only a slight ash remains on the soil. From this proc- 
ess the soil receives comparatively little benefit. If, how- 
ever, decay takes place under the surface, where but little 
oxygen is present, a substance is produced which is called 
humus. All soil on which plants are grown is therefore 
constantly producing humus from the roots, and from the 
stubble and stems if these are turned under. Dig up a piece 
of timothy sod and note the mass of roots — ^about two tons 
of roots to the acre on a good field. Blue-grass yields some 
six tons of roots to the acre. Soils that are cropped contin^ 
uously with the common cereals and the crops removed with- 
out returning manure to the field become deficient in humus, 
and the yield is decreased. 



228 AGRICULTURE 

Effects of humus in the soil. — The most easily noted 
effect of humus is in the darkening of the soil. The so- 
called "black" soils get their color from the abundance of 
humus they contain. The coloring is accomplished by the 
partially decayed and partially preserved black organic mat- 
ter coating over the small particles of the soil. The depth 
to which humus extends, ranging from a few inches to sev- 
eral feet, can be noted at any wayside ditch by the line be- 
tween the dark soil on top and the lighter soil beneath. 

Humus serves several very important uses in the soil: 

( 1 ) it acts as a storehouse for dift'erent kinds of plant food ; 

(2) it increases the capacity of the soil to hold water; (3) 
it aids in conserving heat in the soil; (4) it favors the 
growth of bacteria helpful to plants; (5) it improves the 
physical condition of the soil, making it more porous and 
easily cultivated. 

Living organisms. — Reference has already been made 
to the influence of certain bacteria in the fixing of nitrogen 
in the soil. The soil harbors many dift'erent kinds of bac- 
teria and other organisms. It is fairly teeming with life, 
some of which is hostile to plant growth, but more of which 
is necessary to successful plant development. 

Other organic matter. — Besides living organic matter 
and that which has undergone chemical changes converting 
it into humus, most soils contain a certain amount of veg- 
etable matter in the form of roots and stems of plants 
which have not yet begun the process of decomposition. 
These affect the soil chiefly in making it more accessible 
to air and light, and more permeable to water. 

3. Texture of Soils 
Secure samples of three different field soils, (1) a clay 
soil, (2) a silt soil, and (3) a sandy soil. Place one inch 
deep of each of these in a bottle. Now fill all three bottles 



NATTJRE OF SOIL 229 

with water and shake for several minutes. Set the bottles 
in a quiet place and let the contents settle. Note which 
soil settles to the bottom most quickly. Keep a record of 
the time required for water to become clear in each bottle. 

Meaning of texture. — By texture of soil is meant 
the degree of fineness or coarseness of the particles of which 
it is composed. The finest soil particles, which will remain 
in suspension clouding water for hours, are called clay. The 
next finest, which will settle in about one hour, are silt. The 
coarser particles, which will settle almost at once, are called 
sand or gravel. 

Most crop soils have all three of these grades or sizes of 
particles in their make-up. The texture of the soil depends 
on the proportion of each in the mixture. Soils are named 
in accordance with the particular one of these elements that 
preponderates. 

If the very fine particles are in excess, we speak of a 
clay soil ; if the texture is intermediate, of a loam soil ; and 
if coarse, of a sandy or gravelly soil. We also use the terms 
clay loam, silt loam and sandy loam to describe the texture. 

Composition of three soil types. — A mechanical an- 
alysis of three types of soil texture made by the United 
States Department of Agriculture shows the following pro- 
portions of soil particles in each : 

Very- 
Fine C'se Med. Fine fine 
Type of soil gravel sand sand sand sand Silt Clay 

Norfolk sand (truck soil)-_-3% 15% 22% 38% 10% 8% 4% 
Wabash clay (river bottom)_0 1% 1% 3% 7% 49% 37% 

Silt Loam (corn soil) 1% 1% 2% 8% 73% 15% 

From this table it is seen that Norfolk sand, which is 
an excellent "^il for truck gardening on the Atlantic, is 
eighty-eight per cent, sand and gravel, and only twelve per 



230 AGRICULTURE 

cent, silt and clay combined. Middle western silt loam, 
such as grows most of our best corn, is three-fourths silt, 
and fifteen per cent, clay and twelve per cent. sand. River- 
bottom, clay soils are slightly more than one-third clay, and 
almost one-half silt. 

4. Structure of Soils 

Take a piece of clay in your hand. Try to crumble it 
into small particles. Do the same with a piece of loam ; 
with a lump of sandy soil. Note that some soils plow up 
in great clods, while others break up into small pieces, pro- 
ducing what is called a mellow condition. Have you no- 
ticed that in some places the ground cakes and cracks open 
when it becomes very dry, while in other places it remains 
soft and unbroken no matter how dry it becomes? These 
differences are a matter of soil structure. 

Soil structure. — By soil structure is meant the mode 
in which particles adhere to one another, causing them to 
cling together in solid masses hard to break up, or forming 
but loosely joined lumps easily pulverized. 

Clay soils are of a heavy, dense, clinging structure, dif- 
ficult to break apart, and hence hard to plow. Silt loams 
and sand loams, on the other hand, are friable; that is, 
they are easily broken up. They plow or pulverize easily 
because they are not so adhesive. All soils that are lacking 
in humus tend to become dense and resisting in structure. 

Causes affecting soil structure. — The chief adhesive 
force holding soil particles together in clusters, grains, or 
lumps is the water films that surround the particles. Each 
separate particle is covered by a thin film of water, whose 
effect is much the same as a film of rubber. Let a number 
of small soil particles, each surrounded by its water film, 
come into contact, and their individual films all merge into 



NATURE OF SOIL 231 

one, which by its tension unites these partides in a single 
granule, or cluster. These clusters are in similar way joined 
into still larger clusters, and so on until, in fine clay soils, 
one continuous mass is formed. As clay soils dry out the 
films break, shrinkage occurs, and cracks open. 

The greater adhesive power of clay soils is because of 
the fineness of their particles. The larger the number of 
particles in a given mass of soil, the greater the aggregate 
surface of these particles, and hence the greater the amount 
of water films to bind the particles together. Sandy soils 
do not form into granules, or lumps, because the aggre- 
gate surface of the particles is not sufficient to supply the 
binding force of water films necessary to hold them together. 

It has been carefully estimated that the particles of a 
cubic foot of soils of different textures have the following 
amounts of surface: 

Coarse sandy loam 40,000 square feet. 

Sandy loam 65,000 " " 

Silt loam 100,000 " 

Clay soil 150,000 " 

From these comparisons it is clear that the water films 
are several times greater in area in clay soils than sandy 
soils, and hence the tendency to adhesiveness in clay soils 
is correspondingly increased. 

Soil structure and tilth. — You have seen some seed 
beds that were granular or full of lumps, with very little 
fine earth for packing about the seeds. Others are finely 
pulverized, and favorable for plant growth. The condition 
presented by the soil with reference to plant growth is 
called its tilth. 

Tilth depends chiefly on soil structure. Dense heavy 
soils that have a tendency to form into lumps when plowed, 
or that easily bake after rain, make it difficult to maintain a 



232 AGRICULTURE 

good tilth. On the other hand, a good tilth is equally hard 
to maintain on soils that easily burn out in a drought, or 
that for any reason are not good reservoirs of water. 

5. Erosion of the Soil 

Note the color of the soil on some cultivated hilltop 
and on the lower ground at the foot. 

1. Why is the color on the hilltop lighter? Why is 
the crop yield less? Are there any slopes near by with 
gullies washed out ? 

2. Have you seen sheets of soft earth which have been 
carried by the wash from heavy rains and spread over low 
ground or along the courses of streams? Where does this 
soil come from ? What is its texture, fine or coarse ? What 
is the structure of this overflow soil, heavy and dense, or 
friable? Is such soil fertile? Must this fertility be lost 
from the ground from which the wash came? 

3. Have you ever seen banks of soil built by the car- 
rying of soil particles in the wind? Great masses of wind- 
built soil, called loess, are to be found in Illinois, Wisconsin, 
Iowa, eastern Kansas and Nebraska, and northern Mis- 
souri. These loessial soils consist chiefly of silt. 

4. Which loses more soil from the action of the wind, 
hilltops or valleys? In certain western plains regions as 
much as an inch of top soil is sometimes removed in a single 
dust storm lasting twelve hours. 

Nature of erosion. — By erosion is meant the wearing 
or carrying away of soil by the action of running water and 
the wind. Erosion by running water takes place in some 
degree on all slopes ; the hills are gradually but constantly 
being carried into the valleys. But it is on the steep hillsides 
where the velocity of the water is greatest that most damage 
is done. The reason for this is easily seen when it is re- 
membered that the transporting power of water increases 



NATURE OF SOIL 



233 



as the sixth power of its velocity. This means that doubling 
its velocity increases the carrying power sixty-four times ; 
trebling its velocity increases the carrying power seven hun- 
dred and twenty-nine times, and so on. 

The texture of the soil has much to do with erosion. 
All soils that permit ready absorption of water, as from 
rains or melting snow, leave less to run over the surface, 
and so are less subject to erosion than dense clay soils. 

Effects of water erosion. — Erosion by running water 




An Illiuoib Jicld, sliowiDg the effects of water erosiou. 



not only produces gullies and ditches that interfere with 
cultivation, bwt greatly reduces the fertility of hilltops and 
slopes by general surface washing. For it is the best parts 
of the soil that are carried away by erosion. Organic 
matter is relatively light, and so floats off; the finer clay 
and silt particles which, as we have seen, will remain long 
in suspension in water, are carried away, and the coarser 



234 AGRICULTURE 

portions left behind. And it is just this organic matter and 
the finer soil particles that contain the best part of the plant 
food. No wonder then that the hilltops have a thin poor 
soil, and that the valleys are noted for their fertility. 

Prevention of erosion. — While soil erosion can not be 
wholly prevented, it can be greatly checked. And nature 
suggests one effective remedy in covering all soil with vege- 
tation. It is bare soil that washes and blows away. Even 
a steep hillside when covered with grass is reasonably free 
from erosion. For the stems tend to delay the downward 
rush of water, thus causing it to soak into the ground, and 
the roots bind the soil together. This indicates that steep 
slopes should be used for pasturage and meadows rather 
than for cropping. The addition of organic matter in the 
form of manure also lessens the danger from washing, since 
it increases the capacity of the soil to absorb water, and 
also tends to bind the soil together. 

Hillsides when tilled should be plowed along the slope 
rather than up and down, and in some sections it is neces- 
sary to terrace the hillsides. This delays the forming of 
rivulets and favors absorption of water. Every furrow 
leading down the hill is the beginning of a gully in heavy 
rains. Even the marks left by the wheels of a corn planter, 
unless leveled over by harrowing, will serve as water chan- 
nels and result in waste of soil and washing out of the seed 
or plants. 

Gullies once started should be leveled immediately by 
use of the plow or other form of cultivation. Packs of 
straw, hay, or manure at the head of the channel, or at 
intervals along its course, will do much to stop the erosion, 
if used in time. Sheet, or surface, washing is, however, a 
source of greater damage than the formation of gullies. 
For sheet erosion, though gradual, is constant on the slopes 
of all tilled fields. 



NATURE OF SOIL 235 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Select a spot on your home farm representing its 
typical soil, dig down with a spade or soil auger and take 
two samples, one from a depth of six inches, and one of 
twenty inches. How do the samples differ (1) as to texture, 
(2) as to organic matter, (3) as to structure? How deep 
does the humus extend? Bring samples to school, and 
compare with those from the different farms represented. 

2. Place some of each sample in a bottle or glass of 
water and mix well. Allow the sand to settle (How long?), 
and pour the water off the top into a third receptable. Allow 
the clay to settle until the water becomes clear. (How long 
is required ?) Now determine as nearly as you can what is 
the proportion of clay, silt and sand in the soils. How would 
you name the texture of the soil on your farm ? 

3. Secure a sample of the soil from some cultivated hill- 
top, and examine it for its texture, structure and the 
amount of organic matter. Compare with another sample 
taken from the foot of the hill. Explain the difference in 
color. Dig down with a spade and compare the depth to 
which the humus extends in each case. 

4. Are there any cultivated hills on your farm steep 
enough that erosion is considerable? If so, how does 
the yield on the hill compare with the lower land? Are 
there any gullies forming? If so, how long have they been 
washing out ? What is being done to stop them ? 

5. Determine what kind of soil there is in your school 
yard, such as silt loam, clay soil, or sandy loam, and com- 
pare the aggregate surface of the particles of a cubic foot oi 
it with the area of the school grounds. 

6. What is a soil auger and for what is it used ? What 
is a soil survey, and how and why is it made? Consider 
the possibility of joining with your classmates in making a 
soil survey and a soil map of your district. 



CHAPTER XVI 
SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 

BOTH plants and animals depend on the soil for their ex- 
istence. Since animals can not draw food immediately 
from the soil, they are dependent on plants, which havf 
the power to live chiefly from the soil elements. Plants r'.ay 
therefore be looked upon as minute factories, each at work 
making living tissue out of soil materials. All human food 
comes either from the plants themselves, or from animals 
which feed on plants. 

1. Plant Food and Soil Fertility 

The soil is the home of the plant; there it must find the 
conditions necessary to its growth and development. The 
plant must have air and water for its roots, and for its food 
all the elements that enter into the tissues in its growth. 
The ability of the soil to supply the elements necessary foi 
plant growth is called its fertility. 

Food required by plants. — Agricultural plants re- 
quire, in all, ten different chemical elements for their 
growth. These are: 

Carbon 

Hydrogen ^Supplied by air and water. 



Supplied by soil. 
Quantity inexhaustible. 



Oxygen 

Calcium 
Magnesium 
Iron 
Sulphur 

Nitrogen ] 

Phosphorus Supplied by soil 

Potassium J Quantity limited. 

236 



SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 237 

The first of these ten plant elements, carbon, is supplied 
in the form of carbon dioxid by the atmosphere, and hence 
forms no part of the soil's fertility. Hydrogen and oxygen, 
which are the elements that compose water, are taken up by 
the plant directly from the water of the soil. The next 
four of the list, calcium, magnesium, iron and sulphur, are 
found in practically all soils in quantities sufficient for ordi- 
nary plant growth. The fertility of the soil therefore de- 
pends chiefly on the supply of the last three, nitrogen, phos- 
phorus and potassium. 

Rich or fertile soils are those that contain an abundance 
of these three elements. Every crop removes some amount 
of each of the seven elements supplied by the soil ; but since 
calcium, magnesium, iron and sulphur are practically inex- 
haustible, they do not have to be replaced in order to main- 
tain the soil's fertility. Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potas- 
sium, however, must constantly be returned to the soil if 
it is not to become exhausted and the crops reduced. Like 
the strength of a chain is measured by its weakest link, so 
the fertility of the soil is measured by the plant element of 
which it has the least. 

Danger of loss of fertility. — One of our chief agricul- 
tural problems is to maintain the fertility of the soil. We 
must all live from its products, no matter what our occupa- 
tion. Most of the tillable land of the United States is now 
occupied. Our people must be fed from this land ; there is 
no other source of supply. 

This means that we should not only keep up the fertil- 
ity of the soil, but actually increase it as time goes on. It 
is estimated that our population is increasing five times as 
fast as our food supply. This fact explains in part, at least, 
the high cost of living. 

Much land, particularly in the East and South, has been 
rendered almost valueless through careless methods of 



238 AGRICULTURE 

farming which have robbed the soil of its nitrogen, phos- 
phorus and potassium. Farms located within a hundred 
miles of the great eastern markets have recently been 
bought for from ten dollars to twenty dollars an acre, when 
middle western land is selling for one hundred dollars to 
two hundred dollars an acre. Much of this eastern land 
was originally as good as the western, and would be worth 
three hundred dollars an acre if it had been properly farmed 
to conserve its fertility. 

There are three principal methods of maintaining the 
fertility of the soil oi" increasing it when it has run down. 
These are : ( 1 ) mamtring, either with barnyard manure or 
by plowing under such plants as clover, alfalfa, cow-peas, 
or some other green crop ; (2) using commercial fertilisers; 
(3) rotation of crops. 

2. Barnyard Manure as a Fertiliser 

One of the best evidences of careful farming and good 
management is a well kept and well used manure heap. 
Manure should no more be wasted than any other farm 
product. 

The value of barnyard manure. — Barnyard manure is 
rich in all three of the elements in which the soil is likely 
to run short — nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. It has 
been estimated by experts that if animals are kept in stalls 
or pens throughout the year, given a reasonable amount of 
litter for bedding and all the manure saved, the annual value 
of the manure from each animal will be: horses or mules, 
twenty-seven dollars ; cattle, twenty dollars ; hogs, eight 
dollars ; sheep, two dollars. Differently stated, the value of 
the manure produced during the seven winter months on a 
farm keeping four horses, twenty cows, fifty sheep and ten 
hogs would be at least two hundred and fifty dollars. These 




Field showing the effect on legumes of proper treatment of the 
soil. On the left, manure was used; on the right, limestone, 
rock-phosphate and manure. 




The wrong way to handle barnyard manures. 



17 



240 AGRICULTURE 

figures are based on the cost of an equal amount of com- 
mercial fertilizer. 

It is true that not all the fertility taken from the soil by 
farm crops can be returned by using the manure from the 
feeding of crops, but the greater part of it can be. The 
manurial value of different farm products, based on the 
cost of commercial fertilizers, is shown in the following 
table: {Farmers' Bulletin 193, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.) 

Value of fertilizer in ton 

Phosphoric 
Product Nitrogen acid Potash Total 

Meadow hay $ 3.47 $ 0.57 $ 1.06 $ 5.10 

Clover hay 6.83 .78 

Wheat bran 8.35 3.82 

Linseed meal 17.87 2.25 

Cottonseed meal 23.06 3.96 

Wheat 6.38 1.11 

Oats 6.21 .87 

Corn 5.62 .83 

We see from the above table that the farmer who sells 
a ton of meadow .hay loses from his. farm, fertilizer that 
would cost about five dollars if purchased in commercial 
form. If he sells clover hay, he loses almost as much value 
in fertilizer as his hay brings him. If he pays twenty dol- 
lars a ton for wheat bran he gets over thirteen dollars' worth 
of fertilizer, leaving the feeding cost about seven dollars. 

Of course it is evident that these values will not be ob- 
tained from the feeding of farm crops unless the manure 
is carefully saved and properly used. Not only has manure 
great chemical value because of supplying the elements 
needed in plant growth, but it has bacteriological value as 
well. For manure contains an enormous number of bac- 



1.46 


9.07 


1.14 


13.31 


.99 


21.11 


1.17 


28.16 


.42 


7.91 


.35 


7.43 


.30 


6.75 



SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 241 

teria, many of which aid in plant growth. Attention has 
already been called to the fact that the addition of manure 
improves the physical condition of the soil, making it more 
porous, and increasing the supply of humus. 

Preventing loss from manure. — Loss of fertilizing 
qualities from manure is due principally to two causes : ( 1 ) 
fermentation, or heating, which reduces the supply of nitro- 
gen; and (2) iveathering, or leaching from rains, in which 
all the valuable elements suffer. 

The fermentation of manure is caused by two different 
kinds of bacteria, one of which works near the outside of 
the heap where there is air, and one farther in where the 
air is excluded. A certain degree of fermentation is neces- 
sary to the best rotting of the manure, yet overheating, or 
the "fire-fanging" so common in horse and sheep manure, 
greatly reduces its value. 

The rapidity of fermentation can be controlled in part 
by packing. If the heap is too loosely built, the air-working 
bacteria become active, the heat grows intense and nitrogen 
and humus-making material are lost. If, on the other hand, 
the heap is packed too closely, the decomposition is slow 
and the manure does not have the best effect when spread 
on the soil. Frequent sprinkling with water will aid in 
checking too rapid fermentation. 

Great loss is suffered from leaching when manure is ex- 
posed to the weather. It has been found that six months' 
leaching of horse manure reduces its value fully one-half. 
The remedy lies in collecting manure under cover, so that 
it is not exposed to rains. It should also be provided with 
a water-proof floor for the heap, so that the liquid parts, 
which are fully as valuable as the solid, may not drain away 
into the soil. The profits from open-yard, badly leached 
manure are so small as hardly to pay for spreading it on 



242 AGRICULTURK 

the field. It is a careless, shiftless method of farming that 
allows this great waste, which is so easily prevented. 

The application of manure. — For heavy soils, which 
need to be made porous by the addition of vegetable matter, 
it is well to spread manure on the field fresh from the stalls 
without waiting for it to rot. It should not, however, be 
allowed to lie long before being plowed under, as much of 
its strength is lost in this way. For all lighter soils, and 
especially such as have a tendency to dry out, the manure 
should be rotted before being applied. 

The practise of throwing the manure in heaps on the 
field and later spreading it is a mistake. For here also the 
leaching takes place. Some of the best elements of the 
manure are drained into the ground immediately under 
the heap, and some are lost by passing off in the air. The 
most economical and satisfactory method of spreading man- 
ure is by use of the manure spreader. This machine saves 
labor, and distributes the manure more evenly than is pos- 
sible by hand. 

The amount of manure to be used will depend on the 
strength of the manure and the condition of the soil. Five 
tons to the acre is a light application, ten or twelve tons 
average, and twenty tons a heavy application. 

3. Green Manuring 

As already suggested, the returning of the barnyard 
manure to the soil, no matter how skilfully done, is not 
enough to maintain the fertility. Our soils are everywhere 
being gradually worn out. One of the most successful 
methods of supplementing barnyard manure is by green 
manuring. 

Meaning of green manuring. — By green manuring is 
meant plowing under any green crop for the purpose of im- 



SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 243 

proving the soil. Green manures improve the soil both by 
adding to its fertility and bettering its physical condition. 
If the soil is light and sandy, green manure prevents it from 
drying out. On heavy clay soil green manure has quite the 
opposite effect, because of admitting the air, loosening the 
soil, and improving its drainage. 




Hogs in clover. After pasturinj 
under as green manure. 



this clover will be turned 



Green manure crops. — For most purposes the best 
green manure crops are the nitrogen gatherers already dis- 
cussed — the clovers, alfalfa, cow-peas, soy-beans, the vetches 
and other legumes. Rye, buckwheat, rape and turnips are 
among other crops used as green manures. This group, 
however, lacks the advantage of gathering nitrogen. 

4. Commercial Fertilizers 

Although proper systems of manuring and rotation af 
crops will insure fertility on naturally good soil for many 



244 AGRICULTURE 

years, the land will finally become. exhausted under such 
treatment. This is for the simple reason that the crops re- 
move from the soil each year more of the elements neces- 
sary to their growth than are returned to it. The deficiency 
must finally be made up if permanent fertility is.to be main- 
tained. This is accomplished by supplementing manuring 
and rotation with what are called the commercial fertilizers. 

Increased use of commercial fertilizers. — Commercial 
fertilizers have long been used in a small way, but it is only 
recently that they are coming to be employed on a large 
scale. The farmers of the United States are now paying 
out considerably more than $100,000,000 a year for such 
fertilizers. There are at present more than -five hundred 
manufacturers selling the various fertilizing products. 

Since, as we have seen, only three of the elements neces- 
sary to plant production are likely to run short, commercial 
fertilizers are commonly limited to these three — nitrogen, 
phosphorus and potassium. 

Commercial nitrogen fertilizers. — Nitrogen is the 
most expensive of the three essential fertilizers. Commer- 
cial nitrogen fertilizer is sold chiefly in three different 
forms: (1) nitrate of soda (Chile saltpeter) ; (2) sulphate of 
ammonia, which is a by-product of the manufacture of coke 
and gas; and (3) dried blood, ground or steamed hone, or 
other animal products from packing houses. 

The nitrogen fertilizers cost from fifteen to fifty cents 
a pound. Instead of depending on them the intelligent 
farmer will therefore use every effort to maintain the supply 
of nitrogen in his soil through the nitrogen-fixing legumes, 
occasionally plowing under a crop of clover, alfalfa, cow- 
peas, vetches, or soy-beans. Where these can be grown 
successfully, there will be little need to buy nitrogen ; it can 
be obtained from the seventy million pounds of free nitro- 
gen in the atmosphere above each acre. 



SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 24:> 

Commercial phosphorus fertilizers. — Phosphorus fer- 
tilizers are supplied commercially in the form (1) of the 
boites of animals killed at the slaughter-houses ; (2) of min- 
eral deposits in phosphate rock, immense beds of which are 
found in Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida, 'Wyoming, 
Utah, Idaho and Montana; and (3) of slag from the fur- 
naces where certain ores containing phosphorus are smelted. 

Bone phosphate is sold either as ground bone, which is 
raw bone ground up ; or hone meal, which is made by grind- 
ing after the bones have been steamed under high pressure 
to remove the fats and oils. 

Mineral phosphate is sold in two forms, (1) that first 
treated with sulphuric acid, and (2) the natural rock finely 
ground. The first form has the advantage of being more 
immediately available for plant use. The second form is 
considerably less expensive and, when mixed with organic 
matter like some form of manure, proves equally as valu- 
able as the more expensive compound. 

Commercial potassium fertilizers. — Potassium fertil- 
izers are available in several commercial forms, none of 
which is produced in large quantity in this country. The 
potash mines of Germany are the chief source of supply. 

The crude potash may be used on the soil directly as 
mined, or it may be made into more concentrated form. 
It is sold commercially as a fertilizer (1) as muriate of pot- 
ash, (2) as saltpeter of potash, and (3) as kainit. Since this 
product has to be imported it is naturally more expensive 
than if produced at home. From one hundred to two hun- 
dred pounds to the acre, applied at intervals of from one to 
three years, will, however, usually prove sufficient to keep 
up the supply. 

The application of commercial fertilizers. — Because 
commercial fertilizers are so expensive, and also for the 
reason that the application of a fertilizer when it is not 



246 



AGRICULTURE 



needed may do positive harm, the advice of your county 
agricultural agent or some other agricultural expert should 
be sought before purchasing. An expert, after a survey of 




The better way. Manure carrier and spreader. 

your soil, will be able not only to suggest the best kind for 
local needs, but also the amount that should be used. 



5. The Use of Lime on Soils 

Lime can hardly be called a fertilizer, since it does not 
contain any of the elements in which the soil is generally 
lacking. Yet because of its action on certain other elements 
of the soil it is necessary to plant production. When lime 
does not already exist in the soil it must be added in com- 
mercial form if the fertility of the soil is to be maintained. 
The purpose of lime is to cure the soil of its acid condition. 

Acid soils. — All soils have a tendency to become sour, 
or acid. This acidity comes about in several different ways : 
in the decay of organic matter in the soil, certain acids are 



SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 24/ 

produced; hence the soils rich in humus are Hkely to be 
acid. Plant roots give off acid in the process of their 
growth, and this acid remains in the soil. The action of 
the nitrifying bacteria also adds to the acidity of the soil. 
Heavy, non-porous clay soils which do not allow the en- 
trance of fresh air are usually sour. 

The degree of acidity of soils can be judged (1) by the 
refusal of certain plants to grow in them ; for example, the 
legumes will not thrive in acid soils, and the failure of clover 
or alfalfa to do well should arouse a suspicion of too much 
acid. (2) The presence of such weeds as sheep-sorrel, 
horsetail rush, corn spurry, and wood horsetail indicate 
acid. (3) Blue litmus paper turns red when placed in con- 
tact with a soil containing acid. 

Liming acid soils, — Lime is a certain remedy for acid 
soils. In some regions, especially where limestone abounds, 
the natural supply of lime in the soil is sufficient to overcome 
the surplus acid. In other regions, lime needs to be applied 
in commercial form. This is the only cure for acid soil 
within reach of the farmer. 

Nearly all prairie soil is in some degree acid, especially 
on slopes where leaching of the soil has carried away the 
original deposits of lime, and wherever large supplies of 
humus have formed from the decay of organic matter. 
Thousands of acres of acid land would well repay the cost 
of liming by increased yields. Many farmers now look on 
liming as a regular and necessary requirement. Of course 
lime should not be applied unless needed, but the tests are 
so simple that this is easily determined. 

Forms of lime used. — Lime is available for applica- 
tion to the soil in several forms: (1) Quicklime, or lime 
ready for use in making plaster, when finely ground may be 
applied at the rate of about one ton to the acre. (2) Air- 
slacked lime, or ordinary lime that has been exposed to the 



248 AGRICULTURE 

air, is an excellent form, and may be applied at the rate 
of two or more tons to the acre. (3) Ground or finely 
crushed limestone direct from the quarries is widely used 
in regions where it is easily obtainable. From one to two 
tons to the acre will usually correct the acidity. 

The form of lime to be used will depend chiefly on which 
is most easily available and cheapest. The amount required 
is determined by the degree of acidity in the soil. 

6. Crop Rotation and Fertility 

The rotation of crops can not properly be said to in- 
crease the fertility of the soil. For every crop removes 
from the soil some quantity of each of the elements required 
for plant growth. Certain advantages come from rotation, 
however, which at least save the rapid soil exhaustion re- 
sulting from growing one crop continuously. Rotation also 
brings increased yields. In this sense a proper rotation 
may have the same effect as the application of a fertilizer, 
though it can never serve as a substitute. 

What is meant by rotation of crops. — By rotation of 
crops is meant a regular order follozved for a period of years, 
and alternating on different fields. If this order is hit-and- 
miss, or the result of whim or chance, it can not be called a 
rotation. Rotations may be planned on a two-year, three- 
year, four-year, or any other cycle. 

What is accomplished by rotation. — Rotation of 
crops improves the physical condition of the soil. Grasses 
and legumes have a larger supply of roots than most cereals, 
and so increase the organic matter. Different crops send 
their roots to different depths, and so use new portions of 
the soil. The cultivation of inter-tilled crops clears the soil 
of weeds, and opens it up to air and moisture. 

Rotation also aids in destroying insects and other ene- 



SOIL FERTILITY AND PLANT GROWTH 249 



mies of plants, as we have already seen. The pests that 
attack one kind of crop die out when another crop is raised 
on the field. The growing of the nitrogen-gathering legumes 
on every part of the farm in succession is allowed by rota- 
tion, thus saving the necessity of buying commercial nitro- 
gen fertilizers. 

The crops to use in a rotation. — It is evident that no 
universal standard rotation can be prescribed. Both the par- 
ticular crops and the order must be decided by local con- 
ditions and requirements. The rotation is usually based on 
some one principal crop, the other crops being arranged to 
favor this. For example, corn is the basis of rotation in 
the states constituting the "corn belt." A five-year rota- 
tion with corn occupying about forty per cent, of the farm 
might be something as follows : 



Tear 


Field A 


Field B 


Field C 


Field D 


Field E 


First - 

Second 

Third 

Fourth 

Fifth 

First 


Corn 

Corn 

Oats 

Clover 

Pasture 

Corn 


Corn 

Oats 

Clover 

Pasture 

Corn 

Corn 


Oats 

Clover 

Pasture 

Corn 

Corn 

Oats 


Clover 

Pasture 

Corn 

Corn 

Oats 

Clover 


Pasture 

Corn 

Corn 

Oats 

Clover 

Pasture 



It will be noted that this arrangement provides for two 
fields of corn each year, and one field each of oats, clover, 
and pasture. Of course other crops might be inserted in the 
rotation. With alfalfa in the rotation, a longer cycle is 
needed, since it does not pay to plow alfalfa up so soon after 
planting. 

Topics for Investigation 

L Has the yield of the principal crops increased or 
decreased in your region within the last ten or twenty 
years ? To make sure of this, ask your father, or some one 
who has farmed in the vicinity for some time. 

2. Are there run-down farms in the neighborhood? 
If so, is the land naturally poor, or has it been depleted by 



250 AGRICULTURE 

single cropping or poor methods of farming? Learn the 
history of all such farms as accurately as possible, with ref- 
erence to cropping, rotation, manuring, and so on. 

3. Based on the figures given in section two, what was 
the approximate value of the manure produced on your 
home farm last year? (See p. 240.) 

4. What care is given to saving the manure on your 
home farm? Is it collected under cover? Does it ever 
"fire-fang"? Is there a water-tight floor under the heap? 
How closely is the manure gathered up from the yards? 
What is the method of distributing it on the fields? How 
many loads are used to the acre? 

5. How much hay, oats, corn and other farm products 
were sold from your home farm last year? What was the 
approximate manurial value loss to the farm? 

6. What commercial fertilizers are used in your re- 
gion? In what form is the fertilizer applied? What is 
the quantity used per acre? The cost? To what extent 
is green manuring employed ? What crops are chiefly used ? 
What is meant by a "5-8-7" commercial fertilizer? 

7. To make the litmus-paper test for acid in soils, take 
a small piece of blue litmus paper and place it between 
pieces of thoroughly dampened soil, pressing the soil close 
and leaving it in contact with the paper for five minutes. 
If the paper turns red, the soil is acid and needs lime. 
Secure samples of soil taken at a depth of six inches from 
several difl'erent parts of your farm, including both upland 
and lowland areas, and make the litmus-paper test. 

8. Draw a diagram of your home farm showing the 
diflferent fields. Now work out several different crop rota- 
tions based on your principal crop, and taking into account 
the necessity for growing some legume for improving the 
soil. Compare with the rotations suggested by other mem- 
bers of the class. 



CHAPTER XVII 
SOIL MOISTURE 

WATER is as necessar}^ to the growth of plants as fer- 
tile soil. All the food taken by plants from the soil 
must first be dissolved in water. The tiny root-tips suck 
in this food-laden water which circulates to every part of 
the plant, producing its growth. 

The amount of water required by a growing crop is enor- 
mous. For every pound of dry matter made by the plant, 
from three hundred to eight hundred pounds of water must 
be drawn in by its roots and circulate through it. To pro- 
duce a ton of dry hay on an acre of ground demands that 
approximately five hundred tons of water be pumped by 
the grass stalks from the soil. When the soil lacks water, 
plants are cut ofif from both necessary food and drink. 

1. Forms of Soil Water 

Gravitational water. — Soil that is thoroughly satur- 
ated contains a certain amount of free water that will 
drain off if there is some outlet. That is, the force of grav- 
ity pulls it down through the soil ; hence its name, free, or 
gravitational zvatcr. 

To watch how this works, place some soil in a funnel 
closed with a stopper. Pour water over the soil until it is 
completely soaked. Then remove the stopper and allow 
what will of the water to drain off. All the water that thus 
escapes is free, or gravitational water. 

Plants can not use gravitational water for their supply. 

251 



252 AGRICULTURE 

This is to say that they can not grow in a soaked soil. "Wa- 
ter-logged" soil excludes air from the roots, and the plants 
soon suffer for want of oxygen. Standing water also keeps 
the roots of most plants too cold for good growth. Hence 
the necessity of conditions that will allow the soil to drain 
readily after rains, so that the free water may escape. 

Capillary water. — Soils will not drain entirely dry. 
After your funnel of earth has lost all the water that will 
run from it, it is still wet. This wetness is caused by what 
is called capillary water. 

Capillary water exists in the form of thin films around 
the soil particles and in the spaces between them, as de- 
scribed in an earlier chapter. Each separate particle is sur- 
rounded by its own film, while larger films bind the separate 
particles together in granules. Since the particles of a given 
weight of soil of fine texture present a larger surface area 
than the particles of a soil of coarse texture, it is evident 
that the finer the soil the greater the amount of capillary 
water required to make up the films. 

Plant growth and capillary water. — It is the capillary 
water of the soil that plants use in their growth. Their 
root tips come in contact with the water films surrounding 
the soil particles and drink this water in. One of the first 
requisites of a productive soil, therefore, is its ability to act 
as a reservoir for a large amount of capillary water. 

2. Capacity of Soils of Capillary Water 

Soils differ greatly in their capacity for capillary water. 
This can easily be shown by a simple experiment. Bake a 
pint of sand and a pint of clay until all the water is dried 
out; then place the samples in separate funnels over the 
lower end of which is tied a piece of cheese cloth. Now 
slowly pour water from a graduate over each soil until the 



SOIL MOISTURE 253 

water begins to drip from the bottom of the funnel. Note 
carefully how much water was required in each case. 

Soil texture and capillary water. — Because of the 
fineness of their texture, clay and silt soils have much 
greater capacity for capillary water than sandy or gravelly 
soils. Under average field conditions the difference in the 
amount of capillary water held in the first two feet of fully 
saturated soil is about as follows: 

Sandy loam soil will hold 5 inches of water 

Clay loam soil will hold 7j/^ 

Muck soil will hold 12j4 

This is to say that it would require a sheet of water five 
inches deep to supply the capillary water for the first two 
feet of saturated sandy soil ; a sheet of water seven and one- 
half inches deep for the first two feet of saturated clay soil ; 
and a sheet twelve and one-half inches deep for the first 
two feet of saturated muck soil. 

Drawing ground water by capillarity. — A very simple 
experiment will test the capacity of different soils for draw- 
ing capillary water from below. Take four glass tubes at 
least one inch in diameter and from fifteen to twenty inches 
long, or four chimneys from student-lamps, and arrange 
them suspended in a rack. Tie over the lower end of each a 
piece of cheese-cloth. Fill the tubes with soils of different 
texture, from fine clay to coarse sand. Place a pan beneath 
the tubes, and pour water into it until the water stands half 
an inch above the bottom of the tubes. Now watch the wa- 
ter rise in the different soils. Keep accurate track of the 
time required, and of the height reached in each. What 
are your conclusions? 

Humus and capillary water. — The capacity of any 
soil for holding capillary water is greatly increased by tho 
presence of decaying organic matter. It has been care- 



254 AGRICULTURE 

fully estimated that one ton of humus will absorb two tons 
of water and give it up as needed by growing plants. 

3. Tillage and Soil Water 

One of the chief problems of agriculture is to conserve 
the capillary water of the soil and make it available for 
plant growth. Capillary water is removed from the soil 
in two ways, (1) by evaporation, and (2) by being absorbed 
by the roots of growing plants. What is lost by evapora- 
tion is wasted so far as crops are concerned. 

Tillage for conserving capillary moisture. — All loos- 
ening of the soil increases its absorbing power, and thus 
causes rain to soak into the ground instead of running off 
the top. The deeper the plowing the greater this effect will 
be. Fall plowing, by opening the soil for the absorption of 
the winter snows, adds to the amount of soil water. 

The most effective tillage for conserving capillary water, 
however, is the frequent cultivation during the growing sea- 
son which results in a fine soil mulch over the surface. To 
see the truth of this, make the following experiment : 

Effect of a soil mulch. — Fill two glasses nearly full 
of the same soil ; if the soil is dry, add an equal amount of 
water to each, making the soil fairly damp, but not soaked ; 
pack them equally by striking the glass gently down on the 
table. Now put a half inch of fine, dry road dust over the 
top of one, leaving the other without covering. Set the two 
glasses side by side, and note the time it requires for each 
to dry out by losing its capillary water through evapora- 
tion. 

The fine mulch made by frequent harrowings and culti- 
vatings has precisely the same effect on our fields. In dry 
regions summer fallowing is used for the purpose of col- 
lecting a supply of capillary water. Whatever rain falls is 




The right kind of mulch for 
moisture conservation is 
granular — that is, the dirt 
should not be pulverized too 
finely. 









The wrong kind of mulch. The 
ground is almost dust. Such 
mulch blows away easily. 




. . - ,-J'-^^*l,* ■ -«* ' .-4.-- 



The granular mulch rained up- 
on and left standing for a 
number of days. Observe 
that the ground is cracking 
and that moisture is escaping 
through these cracks. The 
crust can be easily broken. 




Dust mulch rained upon and 
left standing in the hot sun. 
Note that the cru?c has 
cracked, and that the moist- 
ure is escaping very rapidly. 
It is impossible to work up 
this seed bed properly. 



18 



256 AGRICULTURE 

saved by keeping the surface covered with a fine soil mulch, 
and what moisture is drawn up toward the surface from the 
ground water by capillary attraction is also conserved for 
the crop that is to follow. 

4. Soil Drainage 

Necessary as water is to plants, however, much of our 
soil needs drainage to rid it of an oversupply of free or 
gravitational water. There are some eighty million acres of 
marsh lands in the United States. The greater part of this 
waste territory would make excellent farm land if properly 
drained. 

But perhaps fully as important is the occasional small 
piece of wet ground on farms now under tillage. In cer- 
tain regions there is hardly a farm that does not have its 
low marshy places where crops drown out in wet times, or 
which are allowed to lie without cultivation. In nearly all 
cases this land could be made the equal of the remainder 
of the farm by drainage and a little care. 

Surface drainage. — Surface drainage is never so 
thorough and satisfactory as underdrainage, yet it will often 
improve conditions enough to pay. By surface drainage 
is meant the opening of runs or ditches to allov/ the escape 
of surface water that otherwise would stand on the soil, 
flood over lower ground, or percolate down to add to the 
gravitational water already in the subsoil. 

1 ,ow ground is sometimes plowed in narrow strips, the 
frequent dead furrows allowing surface drainage. If there 
is a slight slope and the furrows can open freely at the end, 
this will prove of great benefit. Where such simple drain- 
age will not serve, it is sometimes necessary to construct 
open ditches, though these should give way to underdrain- 
age when this is oossible. For underdrainage is under most 




Undisked stubble plowed. Ob- 
serve that the ground is 
turned up in lumps; that 
there are open spaces at the 
bottom of the furrow which 
prevent the close compact- 
ness of the lower portion of 
the turned furrow with the 
soil beneath. 



Disked stubble plowed. The 
mulch formed by the disk 
harrow fills up the open 
spaces at the bottom of the 
furrow, thereby forming a 
close conection with the sub- 
surface. 




This illustration represents the 
field above treated with a 
pegtooth harrow after plow- 
ing. The surface is in com- 
paratively good condition, 
but the bottom is not compact. 



This illustration represents the 
field above harrowed with a 
pegtooth harrow. The air 
spaces are still at the bottom 
of the furrow. 



258 AGRICULTURE 

conditions a more successful way of removing the water, 
and it saves much loss of ground and the cutting up of 
fields. 

Making surface drains. — Surface runs which are only 
required to remove surplus water during flood seasons may 
be made one and one-half feet deep and ten feet wide at the 
top at a cost of about twenty-five cents a rod, using a road 
grader for the excavating. Such shallow runs are often 
seeded, and the edges leveled off and cultivated, thus avoid- 
ing waste of land. Open ditches of this kind are often de- 
sirable in connection with underdrainage. They also serve 
as an eaves-trough to prevent flood water of surrounding 
uplands from entering lower areas. 

Deeper ditches are required when the main drain is to 
receive the discharge of lateral drains. The size and depth 
will depend on the territory to be drained, and the fall of 
the ditch. In the Middle West, open ditches, many of them 
miles in length, are being constructed, each farm served 
paying its share of the expense. Open lateral ditches or 
underground tile then empty into this main drain. Under 
average conditions, the cost of opening a ditch seven feet 
deep and twenty feet wide at the top by means of a dredging 
machine is about one thousand dollars a mile. 

Underdrainage. — Underdrainage has the advantage 
of carrying off the ground water to any desired depth. 
This is an important matter in the growth of most crops. 
For where the level of ground water is near the surface, 
plants will not strike their roots deep in the soil, but spread 
them out near the top. This leaves the crop at the mercy 
of drought later in the season, when the upper layers of 
soil dry out. Deep rooting is also necessary to make full 
use of the plant food of the soil. 

Tile underdrains. — Burnt clay and cement are the 
materials chiefly used for underdrains in most regions. 



SOIL MOISTURE 259 

These materials are made into cylinders from three to thir- 
ty-six inches in diameter, and from twelve to thirty inches 
in length. For lateral drains, tiles four or five inches in 
diameter are most used. The main outlet drain usually 
requires tiles from eight to twelve inches. 

Placing the drains. — Moderately heavy clay soils re- 
quire laterals about four rods apart to carry off the rainfall. 
If the subsoil is sandy, the laterals may be as much as eight 
rods apart. Sometimes the marshiness of a piece of ground 
is caused by seepage leading to it from some higher area. 
In this case, there should be a line of tile at the edge of the 
lower ground to receive the seepage. 

Several lines of parallel drains are more economical than 
one central line into which diagonal laterals run. This is 
because with parallel drains there is less area receiving 
double drainage. Several parallel lines can often be car- 
ried into one line of larger tile, and all discharge through 
the same outlet, thus saving trouble and expense. 

Depth of tile.— Tile should be placed deep enough 
that the level of ground water will not stand too near 
the surface, and yet not too deep to carry off the gravita- 
tional water without allowing it to stay too long in the 
soil. In clay subsoil the most common depth is about three 
feet. In partially sandy subsoils, the depth may be four feet. 
All tile meant to catch seepage should be as deep as four feet. 

Gradient, or fall. — The larger tiles may be lard with 
a fall of an inch to one hundred feet. Laterals should have 
from two to three times this much fall. Lines for catching 
seepage should have still greater slope ; as much as five 
inches to one hundred feet, if this is possible. 

Cost of tiling. — ^The cost of tiling will, of course, vary 
with the size of tile used, the depth it is laid, and the 
character of the soil. The average cost under middle west- 
ern conditions is about as shown in the following table : 



260 AGRICULTURE 









D. 


epth ti 


le is laid 




Size of tile 


3 


feet 


4 


feet 


5 feet 


6 feet 


4 inch 


.__ $ 


.30 


$ 


.50 


$ .80 


$1.25 


5 inch 





.35 




.55 


.85 


1.30 


6 inch 





.40 




.60 


.90. 


1.38 


8 inch 


.__ 


.45 




.65 


.95 


1.40 


10 inch 





.50 




.70 


1.00 


1.45 


12 inch 


— 


.55 




.75 


1.05 


1.50 



Topics for Investigation 

1. Is there any ground on your home farm too wet 
or marshy for cropping successfully? If so, measure care- 
fully the amount of land in such areas. Do any patches 
break the regularity of cultivated fields? How much land 
is practically wasted as far as any return in crops is con- 
cerned ? 

2. What is the value of your farm per acre? What is 
its rental value per acre ? What is the value of all the land 
lost by being too wet to cultivate? What is its rental 
value? Have you any land under cultivation that is too 
w^et at times to produce good crops? What do you esti- 
mate is the loss? 

3. Draw a diagram of any pieces of marsh land on your 
home farm, showing the outlet for drainage and the distance 
the drain w^ould have to run in each case. Are there any 
places where a shallow run would serve? Have you any 
low ground troubled with rain floods from higher land? 
If so, could a shallow ditch be made to serve as an eaves- 
trough to save the flooding? 

4. Taking the cost of tile drainage as shown in the 
table, figure what it would cost to tile out wet places on 
your farm, using four-inch tile for parallels laid four rods 
apart. The parallels are to connect across the lower end 
with a six-inch line, and this is to empty into the nearest 
available ditch or stream. Would it pay to put in tile on 
your home farm? 

5. By digging down in several different places on your 



SOIL MOISTURE 261 

farm, see whether you can discover the level of ground 
vv^ater. Have you ever seen water gather in the bottom of 
a post hole? What does this indicate? 

6. Study the texture of the soil in your school yard, 
and compute the approximate weight of the capillary water 
contained in the first two feet of its depth when the soil is 
well saturated. 

7. Show how you can make a soil survey of your 
father's farm by the use of the soil auger and a diagram 
of the farm, indicating the top soil, subsoil, elevations, low- 
lands, and drainage possibilities. 

8. Upon an outline sketch of the United States indi- 
cate the various regions of distinct types of soil, such as 
the black loam, sandy loam, clay loam, mountain silt, lime- 
stone, and other types of soil representative of a region. 

5. Soil Demonstrations 

In connection with the study of the soil there is abun- 
dant opportunity to make some very interesting demonstra- 
tions which will also have direct application to the manage- 
ment of the soil on the farm or in the garden. 

1. Show how to determine the kind and depth of soil 
of any particular spot. 

2. Show how to test the soil for acidity. Show two 
methods if possible. 

3. By the use of a tumbler of muddy water and the 
application of a little lime, show the value of lime to soils. 

4. Demonstrate the value of shallow cultivation for the 
conservation of moisture in soils by the use of loaf-sugar 
and powdered sugar, a solid or well packed piece of earth 
and a dust mulch placed on top. Apply water to each at 
the bottom. 

5. Demonstrate how to test the capillarity of soils. 

6. Demonstrate by the use of various types of soil and 
the same kind of seed the relations of types of soil to the 
germination of seed and its subsequent plant growth. 



262 AGRICULTURE 

7. Show by demonstration how legumes tend to con- 
serve the fertility of the soil. 

8. Show by the use of different types of soil their re- 
spective merits in the conservation of moisture. 

6. Soil Play Contest 

1. Soil type naming contest. 

2. Soil analysis contest. 

3. Soil guessing games. 

4. Soil sample getting contest. 

5. Stone naming contest, in which samples of various 
types of native stones are placed before the contestants and 
the one who can name the largest number in a given time 
is to be judged the winner. 

7. Soil Fertility Club Projects 

The object of this club project is to organize the boys 
and girls into a cooperative group for the purpose of build- 
ing up the soil fertility of a community. The pupils should 
pledge themselves to manage at least one acre of land dur- 
ing the season with the idea of not only making a net profit 
on the investment for the season, but of starting and carry- 
ing on a three to five-year rotation of crops with a dis- 
tinct plan of growing leguminous crops such as clover, 
alfalfa, cow-peas, etc. This kind of a club project can be 
easily combined with the other club work outlined in con- 
nection with corn, small grains and forage crops. 

Combined club projects. — ^The project may also con- 
template the raising of some live stock such as a thorough- 
bred pig, a baby beef, a pen of chickens, or any other live 
stock which rightfully belongs to the economy of the farm. 
Club members in this project should keep a definite record 
with a view to showing the bookkeeping account and records 



SOIL MOISTURE 263 

including observations, receipts and expenditures, not only 
for the first year, but for the entire period of three or four 
years covering a rotation scheme for the upbuilding of the 
soil. 

Club membership. — This particular club work should 
be maintained for the members of the agricultural class 
and should not be open to the boys and girls who are, as a 
rule, too young to appreciate and undertake properly this 
line of work. The teacher, in cooperation with the county 
superintendent and county agricultural agent, may assist in 
making up a definite three or four-year rotation plan which 
can be uniformly followed by all members of the club. 

The basis of award for a soil fertility club may be as 
follows : 

1. The plan and management of rotation 20 

2. The average yield per acre 20 

3. The net profit on investment 20 

4. The fertile condition of the soil at the end of a three or 
four-year period 20 

5. Soil and crop records, story and soil chart of work 20 

Total score 100 

8. Class Demonstrations 

In order to stimulate interest in the work and give 
greater zest to study and the mastery of subject-matter, we 
would recommend holding a class demonstration contest. 
The three class members who give the best demonstration 
will make up the official demonstration team of the class on 
''soils." They will enter the inter-class, inter-city, inter- 
county or inter-state demonstration and in this way you 
can put the "football spirit and philosophy of education" 
into the school work through the agricultural class. 

Subjects for demonstration work may be any or all of 



264 



AGRICULTURE 



those given on page 261. Other subjects for both individual 
and team demonstration may be suggested by members of 
the class and by the teachers. 

Invite the county agent from the County Farm Bureau, 
county club agent, or some soil expert, to give an address 
or a demonstration on "Soils and Their Management" be- 
fore the class, and if agreeable to the school management, 
let this be done before the entire school. All need a greater 
knowledge of soil as the source of all that we eat, drink 
and wear. 

It might be well here to go into some of the more ele- 
mental things in regard to the chemistry of soils. Every 
student should bring samples of soil, know different types 
and their relation to crop production and their ability to 
drain well, hold fertility and moisture as well as the causes 
for "washing," "erosion/' "blozving," and "ninning out." 

Students may well take field trips to study types of low 
or high priced land in the neighborhood. To be a good 
judge of land or soil will prove a great asset for the student 
through life regardless of vocation or the profession he 
intends to follow. 




Parlin (N. J.) team demon- 
stratins before an inter-state 
fair audience. 



PART IV. FARM ANIMALS 



CHAPTER XVIII 
FARM ANIMALS AND AGRICULTURE 

FARM animals form one of the most important sources of 
wealth in the nation. The five most important groups 
of animals, ranked according to their market value, are 
horses, cattle, hogs, mules and sheep. If these animals 
should all be sold, they would bring the enormous sum of 
nearly six billion dollars, or sixty dollars for every man, 
woman and child in the United States. 

1. Work Animals 

Farm animals serve several important uses: (1) they 
provide food for man, (2) they work for him, and (3) they 
supply various useful products. The total market value of 
the working animals, horses and mules, is slightly greater 
than that of the food producing group, cattle, sheep and 
hogs. 

Using animals for work. — Centuries ago man had not 
yet domesticated the animals and trained them to work for 
him. Since the uses of steam and electricity had not been 
discovered, all labor had to be done by men themselves. 
The implements used for cultivating the soil were all crude 
and ineffective, and could only be operated by hand. It 

265 



266 AGRICULTURE 

then required much more time and effort to secure a living by 
agriculture than it does now. 

One of the greatest lines of progress in America has 
been the substitution of animal power for man power in 
doing farm work. In this we are far ahead of most other 
nations, even those of Europe. For example, we have in 
the United States almost twenty-five million horses, or ap- 
proximately one to every four persons. In France, one 
horse has to serve ten people ; in Germany, thirteen, and in 
Great Britain, twenty-six. 

Saving in time by work of animals. — The use of work 
animals has resulted in great saving of time. It has been 
estimated that in 1830 each bushel of wheat grown in the 
United States required three hours of a man's time ; it now 
requires less than ten minutes. In 1850 it took a man four 
and one-half hours on an average to grow, harvest and 
shell a bushel of corn ; it now requires less than forty min- 
utes. The greater part of this saving has come through the 
use of improved farm machinery drawn by horses or mules. 

Where the peasants of European countries use shovels, 
hoes, scythes or other primitive implements, we employ 
gang-plows, disk harrows and self-binders. The great sav- 
ing in human energy and time growing out of this dif- 
ference is seen when it is remembered that one horse hitched 
to modern machinery can do the work of at least ten men 
with hand tools. Many an American boy with his four- 
horse team is therefore accomplishing the labor of forty 
European peasants with their hand work and poor tools! 

The animals used for work. — Among the various ani- 
mals that men have trained to work for them are horses, 
cattle, mules, buffalo, reindeer, camels, dogs and elephants. 
No animals, except horses, mules and cattle, have ever been 
extensively used for farm work in this country. The use of 
oxen for work has now been almost wholly discontinued. 



FARM ANIMALS AND AGRICULTURE 267 

During recent years, horses and mules have found a com- 
petitor in the automobile and the traction-engine. Thousands 
of farmers now own their cars, and the gasoline tractor is 
a common sight on many of the larger western farms. In 
spite of these facts, however, the number of horses and 
mules on our farms is constantly increasing, and the mar- 
ket for them is growing better and more uniform. The 
price of work animals is considerably higher than it was 
when automobiles and traction-engines began to come into 
use. Horses will always have an important place in the 
economy of the farm. 

2. Animals That Supply Food 

Meat and other animal products form a very important 
part of our food supply. Even vegetarians, who are op- 
posed to the eating of flesh, depend largely on such foods 
as butter, eggs and milk. 

Meat as food. — A great proportion of all our farm 
crops goes to the feeding of meat producing animals. The 
most progressive nations of the world are those that in ad- 
dition to fruit and vegetables for the diet make much 
use of their domestic animals in supplying food prod- 
ucts. Meat is a more expensive food than grains and vege- 
tables, and people of the poorer classes can not afford to 
eat it. Millions of those living in oriental countries seldom 
taste meat in any form. Lack of nutrition and a balanced 
ration are shown in absence of ambition and enterprise. 

According to careful estimates the food supply in 
American homes is divided among the different foods in 
approximately the following proportions (Farmers' Bulletin 
391): 

Meats and poultry 16% 

Dairy products 18% 



268 AGRICULTURE 

Cereals and their products 31% 

Vegetables and fruits 25% 

All other foods 10% 

It is therefore seen that we derive more than one-third 
of aU our food in this country from animals, either by con- 
suming their flesh or other products from them, such as 
milk, butter, cheese, etc. 

Animals used for meat. — The animals whose flesh is 
chiefly used for food are cattle, hogs and sheep. So great 
has the industry of preparing their flesh for food become, 
that every city has its great stock-yards and slaughter- 
houses, where hundreds of thousands of animals are killed 
every year. Cold storage vaults are provided in which 
meats can be kept at a temperature below freezing for 
months at a time. Much of the meat that is now used on 
the farms is first shipped to the city packing houses for 
slaughter, and then bought back from retail dealers as 
needed, in the form of bacon, ham, canned or dried beef, 
or as fresh meats shipped in refrigerator cars. Many small 
towns also have their local slaughter-houses, where animals 
purchased from the farms are killed for home consumption. 

Other food products from animals. — The other food 
products from animal life, such as milk, butter, eggs and 
cheese, are even more important. Milk and eggs contain 
more of the different food elements needed by the human 
body than any other foods; and butter is as necessary as 
meat. 

The dairy and poultry industries are therefore among 
the most important connected with agriculture. Milk and 
butter are shipped to the cities in refrigerator cars or special 
trains. Hundreds of creameries are operated to save time 
for the farmer and insure him greater profit. Many train- 
loads of eggs and butter are collected during the summer 



FARM ANIMALS AND AGRICULTURE 269 

months and put in cold storage and kept for the winter 
supply. 

3. Other Animal Products 

The farm animals are useful in other ways than doing 
work and providing food for man. Many practical neces- 
sities are supplied by them. 




A promising family. 

Leather. — The skins of all the common farm animals 
are saved for leather. Cattle, horses, sheep and even pigs, 
contribute to the making of our shoes, gloves, mittens, har- 
nesses, saddles, cushions and many other articles in com- 
mon use. 

Wool. — Sheep furnish one of the most valuable cloth- 
ing materials known. ]\Iany sheep ranches are maintained 



270 AGRICULTURE 

chiefly for the fleeces, mutton being of secondary consid- 
eration. More than thirty-eight million sheep annually give 
up their wool in the United States for the making of cloth- 
ing and other articles for the household. 

Other products. — We owe many other articles of 
common use to some form of animal product. Our brushes 
are made from bristles. Buttons are cut from bone. Gelatin 
and glue are both animal products. Many soaps are made 
from animal parts not suitable for meat. Blood and bone, 
as we have already seen, are used for fertilizers. So com- 
pletely are all parts of slaughtered animals saved for some 
useful purpose that it is said nothing is lost of the pig when 
it is killed, except the "squeal." 

It is estimated that the value for fertilizing purposes of 

the manure of all farm animals in the United States, if 

properly saved and applied to the soil, would annually reach 

the stupendous amount of more than two billion dollars. 
» 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a careful list of all animals belonging on your 
home farm. Have your father help estimate what each one 
is worth, and compute the value of all live stock, and find 
the annual interest on this amount at six per cent. 

2. How many bushels of corn were raised on your 
farm last year? On the basis of the time required for pro- 
ducing a bushel of corn in 1850, how many days of nine 
hours each would have been required to produce this crop 
with machinery then in use? Make the same computation 
with the wheat raised on your farm, comparing with the time 
required to produce a bushel in 1830. 

3. Talk with your mother, and see whether you can es- 
timate what proportion of the food used on your table 
comes from each of the classes shown in section two. 

4. Make an investigation by reading and inquiring 
among people of the amount of meat, butter, eggs and 
milk used by the farming class in England, Germany, 



FARM ANIMALS AND AGRICULTURE 271 

France, Spain, Russia, China. Compare with our own 
country. 

5. Is there any country where the buffalo is now used 
as a work animal ? The elephant ? The camel ? Where are 
reindeer used, and for what purpose? What are the differ- 
ent lines of work in which dogs are employed? 

6. Show on the map of the United States the most 
important regions for the production of the various types 
of domestic animals, such as the horse, dairy and beef cat- 
tle, the sheep, the hog and the goat. Consult the last 
census report with reference to increase or decrease of farm 
animals m the various states. 



CHAPTER XIX 
CATTLE 

CATTLE rank second only to horses in market value in 
the United States. Our farms support some twenty- 
two million dairy cows, or one to approximately every four 
people. In addition, there are about thirty-seven million 
other cattle, chiefly calves and beef stock. The value of 
each of these two great groups is about the same, nearly a 
billion dollars, or almost two billion dollars for the whole. 

I. Dairy Cattle 

Dairying is one of the leading American industries. 
Each of six states, Wisconsin, New York, Iowa, Minnesota, 
Illinois and Texas, has more than a million dairy cows, and 
four other states, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Alichigan and Mis- 
souri, have more than three-quarters of a million each. 
These ten states supply fifty-three per cent, of all our dairy 
cattle. 

The following chart shows the percentage of all the farm 
dairy cows of the United States found in each of these 
ten leading dairy states : 

Wisconsin 7.3% 

New York 7.1% 

Iowa 6.5% 

Minnesota 5.5% 

Illinois 5.0% 

Texas 5.0% 

Pennsylvania 4.6% 

Ohio 4.2% 

Michigan 3.9% 

Missouri 3.8% 

272 



CATTLE 



273 



Profitable and unprofitable cows. — Whether a dairy- 
herd yields a profit or a loss depends first of all on the milk 
and butter-fat producing capacities of the indiv^idual cows. A 
poor cow may require as much feed as a good one, and de- 
mands as much labor and attention. 

It has been estimated that one-third of the dairy cows 
in the United States are kept at an actual loss. Twice 




A cliampiuu Hereford. 



every day, therefore, there are milked some seven million 
cows, mere "boarders," that not only return no profit, but 
use up the profit from good covers. How many cows of this 
kind are kept on your farm? 

Profit differences in herds. — It is estimated that the 
skim-milk, calf and manure from a dairy cow are worth 
the cost of caring for her. This leaves the milk to bal- 
ance against the value of the feed. The difference 



274 AGRICULTURE 

between the best and the poorest cow in almost any herd 
is surprising. This difiference is well shown in the fol- 
lowing record of fifteen cows for one year in an Illinois 
herd : 



No. 


Lb. 


Lb. 


Per cent. 






cow 


milk 


fat 


fat 


Profit 


Loss 


1 


1204 


49 


4.07 




$27.52 


2 


1236 


50 


4.05 





27.20 


3 


2944 


88 


2.99 





15.17 


4 


2597 


91 


3.50 





15.38 


5 


2548 


98 


3.85 





13.18 


6 


24/5 


99 


4.00 




13.18 


7 


2569 


105 


4.09 





10.98 


8 


3164 


117 


3.70 





8.37 


9 


2829 


123 


4.34 





8.67 


10 


3380 


149 


4.41 





1.58 


11 


4582 


158 


3.45 


$1.41 




12 


4146 


174 


4.20 


3.41 





13 


4103 


177 


4.31 


5.41 





14 


4993 


191 


3.82 


8.40 





15 


4435 


200 


4.51 


10.21 
$28.84 


$141.23 
28.84 



Loss $112.39 

Av. 3147 124 3.94 $ 7_.49 

Difiference in profit between best and poorest cow, $3/.73 



This was an exceptionally poor herd, so poor that it 
lost the owner $112.39 for the year— an average loss of 
$7.49 per cow. Either of the two poorest cows lost almost 
as much as the best five made their owner. Even the best 
cow of this herd is poor enough, but there is a difference 



CATTLE 275 

of $37.73 in the year's record between the best and the 
poorest. 

2. Selecting Dairy Coivs According to Type 

Dairy cows may be selected by two different methods: 
(1) keeping a record of the amount of milk produced, with 
the percentage of butter-fat it contains; and (2) judging 
whether the cow conforms to the physical type known as 
good dairy stock. The first of these is the only absolutely 
sure method. The second is also of great value, for cows 
are often bought without any possibility of learning their 
milk record. Every farmer should, therefore, know the 
points of a good dairy cow. 

The dairy type of cow. — Dairy cattle and beef cattle 
present two rather distinct types as to form, or build, and 
appearance. In general, the frame of the beef animal is 
the shape capable of taking on the largest amount of flesh, 
while that of the dairy cow is adapted to the production 
of milk. Both types must be good eaters, for only the 
food above the amount required for maintaining the body 
can go to the production of either beef or milk. 

The good dairy cow is spare of flesh, for the surplus 
food must be turned into milk instead of fat. She appears 
somewhat loose-jointed, but the muscles are well developed. 
The coat is smooth and soft, the eyes are bright, and the dis- 
position is wide-awake and active. The jaw is strong, the 
stomach and other organs of digestion are capacious. The 
circulatory system needs size and strength, as it must supply 
abundance of material for the production of milk. The 
udder is well shaped and large. 

Shape of the dairy cow. — The typical dairy cow has 
what is called a wedge conformation, or shape. The body 
outline, whether viewed from side, top, or front, roughly 
resembles a wedge. 



276 



AGRICULTURE 



The side wedge has its base in a Hne formed by the depth 
of the body through the hips to the lower extremity of the 
udder, with the point of the wedge at the head. The top 
wedge has its base in a line across the width of the hips, 
and its point at the withers. The front wedge has its base 



Ac 




S 




<S 9 /4 




/ 


^O 


V 






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^ 


wM 


i 








m 


3 — 


..J 


^M 


1 




w^^m 


. 




.^ 




/ 


^ 


1 






Hk^hI 


f 1 2/ 




^ 


1 


■ 






^P^^^^Hj 


k £^ 






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'^^'"'^1 


wm 






//- 


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J| 2r %^ 


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^L^t^aj^^.^ijA 


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IkgjMs^^BMJ^^ 


■B^Bw<i^ ''-"-. i 






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M^mH^SSS^ 


B^^-W^f ■ .' -r 












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1 


1. 


Muzzle 


8 


Nock 


15. 


Bibs 22. 


TUghs 1 




2. 


Jaw 





Withers 


16. 


Barrel 23. 


Hind legs 




3. 


rac9 


10 


Sbonlders 


17. 


iKJln 24. 


T7dder 




4. 


Foroboad 


11 


Fore legs 


18. 


Hips ■ 25. 


Teats 




6. 


Eyes 


12 


Crops 


10. 


Rnmp 26. 
Pin bones 27. 


Milk Teles 




6. 


Ears 


13 


Chest 


20. 


UUk veUii 


„ 


7. 


Thiol 


t 


H 


__Back 


£1. 


T»U 


_i 



Parts of a dairy cow shown as an aid in judging. 

in a line across the floor of the chest, and its point at the 
top of the withers. 

It is readily seen that the shape given the body by these 
three wedge conformations allows a generous amount of 
room for the digestive and circulatory systems and the 
udder. This form does not, however, give a frame capable 
of taking on a large amount of flesh, and is therefore not 
adapted to beef cattle. 



CATTLE 277 

3. Judging the Dairy Cow 

Various score-cards are in use for the judging of dairy 
cows. Judging by use of the score-card trains in accurate 
observation and judgment, and shows the relative value of 
the different points. Secure a score-card from your state 
college of agriculture or the United States Department of 
Agriculture and learn to use it in judging cattle. 

4. Selecting the Dairy Cow by Milk Tests 

The profit from a dairy cow depends on two factors, 
(1) the amount of milk produced, and (2) the percentage 
of butter-fat in the milk. The first of these questions can 
be determined by weighing the milk ; the second, by testing 
the milk with the Babcock milk test. 

Testing the milk of different cows. — In order to de- 
termine the record of each cow of the herd, the milk must 
be weighed and tested regularly throughout the season. The 
testing and weighing may be done daily, though this fre- 
quent a test is hardly necessary for practical farm purposes. 
A plan followed by many farmers is to weigh the milk daily, 
and test the butter-fat of both night's milk and morning's 
milk once a month. 

Making the Babcock test for butter-fat. — It is not 
the quantity of milk alone that determines the value of a 
cow. Practically all milk and cream now sold from the 
farm for butter-making purposes are paid for, not by weight 
or bulk, but by the amount of butter-fat they contain. The 
purpose of the Babcock test is to measure the percentage 
of butter-fat in milk. Every dairy farm should regularly 
use this test. 

The materials for making the Babcock test are (1) a 
hand-power centrifugal tester; (2) two or more milk test- 
bottles ; (3) a pipette to measure the milk ; (4) a small glass 



278 



AGRICULTURE 



measure for acid; (5) sulphuric acid with specific gravity of 
1.82; (6) hot water. The necessary apparatus can be 
bought for about five dollars, tho'j.gh a fuller equipment 
may cost as much as twenty dollars. Full directions for 
making the test come with each set of apparatus. 

Steps in the Babcock test. — The Babcock test is not 
difficult to make, nor does it require much time. Yet great 




A Galloway prize winner. 



care must be taken if the results are to be trustworthy. The 
following are the steps required in making the test: 

1. Stir the milk thoroughly before taking the sample. 

2. Fill the pipette to the height shown by the mark. 

3. Empty the pipette into the test-bottle, blowing to drive 
all the milk out. 

4. Fill the acid measure to the mark shown with sulphuric 
acid, and add to the test-bottle. 

5. Shake the bottle to mix the milk and acid thoroughly. 



CATTLE 279 

6. Place the bottles in the machine, and whirl five minutes. 

7. Add hot water to each bottle until filled to bottom of 
neck, and whirl one minute. 

8. Add more hot water to bring the top of the fat nearly 
to the top of the marks on the neck of the bottle, and whirl 
one minute. 

9. Read the per cent, of fat in the neck of the bottle; this 
indicates the quality of the milk. 

10. Empty the test bottles and wash. 

The percentage of butter-fat ought to be not less than 
three and five-tenths, and should range up to five or occa- 
sionally even six in the milk of the better cows. 

5. Dairy Breeds 

Dairymen are not agreed as to the type of cow that is 
most profitable. Some prefer what they call a "general- 
purpose cow," combining as far as possible the qualities of 
both dairy and beef breeds. Such animals are usually of 
large frame, take on flesh readily, and so are easily con- 
verted into beef when this is more profitable than milking. 
Other dairymen select the pure dairy breeds, preferring to 
get their profit out of the milk produced, rather than from 
the beef. Which is the better plan will depend on local 
conditions and demands. 

Choosing the dairy breed. — It is impossible to select 
any one breed of dairy cattle as the best under all condi- 
tions. Some are noted for producing large quantities of 
milk, and others for producing milk rich in butter-fat. Some 
do best when allowed a wide range for foraging, and others 
when they are kept close and fed high. Some give a large 
flow of milk for a short season, and others a smaller flow 
for a longer time. The dairyman should decide what par- 
ticular qualities are best adapted to his needs, and then 
select the breed that will meet these needs. 

Leading dairy breeds. — Among the best -known 




"Banastine Belle de Kol," a clianipion Hoi stein cow with a 
record of 1.058.34 pounds of butter-fat in 3G5 days. 




Another dairy champion of the United States, "May Rilma," 
a Guernsey. Her record for 365 days was 19,639.5 pounds of 
milk and 1,059.59 pounds of butter-fat- 



CATTLE 281 

breeds of dairy cattle are the Holstein, or Holstein-Friesiaii, 
as they are officially named ; the Jersey ; the Guernsey ; and 
the Ayrshire. The Shorthorns are also a favorite class, 
combining in large degree both dairy and beef qualities. 
Records kept for one year in various experiment stations of 
the United States Department of Agriculture show the fol- 
lowing average ratings as milk producers of the first four 
of these breeds in the. station herds : 

Pounds Per cent. Pounds Per cent. 
Breed of milk of fat of fat total solids 

Holstein 8699 3.45 300 12.99 

Jersey 5508 5.14 283 14.2 

Guernsey 5509 4.98 274 14.2 

Ayrshire 6533 3.85 252 12.98 

Average 6562.25 4J55 277.25 13.5925 



6. Feeding Dairy Cozus 

Just as the soil must contain the food elements needed 
in the growth of the plant, so the dairy cow's rations must 
contain the elements required to produce milk and upbuild 
the body. If proper food is not supplied, either the amount 
of milk or its quality will be sure to suffer. Only three 
different food elements, or nutrients, are likely to run short 
in the ordinary rations of the cow; these are (1) protein, 
(2) carbohydrate, and (3) fat. 

Protein. — Protein is required in the animal body for 
the making of all muscular parts, blood and connective 
tissue. It supplies nearly one-third of the solid part of milk, 
going to form the curd and albumen. 

It is fortunate that the nitrogenous plants so valuable 
in building up the soil are also rich in protein. Alfalfa, 
clover, cow-peas, soy-beans, the vetches and other legumes 
are therefore desirable as a part of the dairy ration. Bran, 



282 AGRICULTURE 

linseed meal, cottonseed-meal, gluten feed and oats are also 
rich in protein. Protein should make up approximately one- 
sixth of the cow's ration during the milking season ; no 
other food can take its place. It is the most expensive part 
of the ration, ?.nd should be secured as far as possible from 
home-grown legumes. 

Carbohydrates. — The carbohydrates are necessary to 
supply energy, heat and fat for the animal body, and sugar 
and fat in the milk. All the common grains are rich in 
carbohydrates, which are the cheapest nutrient of the cow's 
rations. Among the more common carbohydrate feeds are 
corn, corn silage, corn stover, oats straw, millet hay, sugar 
beets and dried beet pulp. Timothy hay should not form 
a part of the dairy ration, as it has few of the elements re- 
quired in producing milk. 

Fat. — Fat is used for practically the same purposes 
as the carbohydrates in maintaining the body and produc- 
ing milk. It is contained in some degree in all feeds, 
though in smaller quantities than carbohydrates, and in 
more concentrated form. It has been found that one pound 
of fat will serve the same purpose in the dairy ration as 
two and one-fourth pounds of carbohydrates. 

The balanced ration. — By a balanced ration is meant 
a ration which contains the right digestible proportion of 
each kind of nutrient demanded by the animal. The term 
nutritive ratio is used when speaking of the relation of pro- 
tein to carbohydrate and fat in the ration. The nutritive 
ratio of the dairy ration is 1:6; this is to say, one part of 
digestible protein to six parts of carbohydrates ind fat com- 
bined. The following tables show several balanced and 
economical rations for dairy cows:* 

* (Purdue Ext. Bui. No. 21.) 



CATTLE 283 

Ration I. Ration II. 

Corn silage 30 pounds Sugar beets 25 pounds 

Cow-pea hay 10 " Alfalfa hay 10 " 

Corn stover 2 " Corn stover 5 " 

Corn 6 " Corn 5 " 

Cottonseed-meal 1.5 " Dried brewers' 

grains 5 " 

Ration III. Ration IV. 



Clover hay 18 pounds Corn silage 30 pounds 

Corn 5 " Canadian pea and 

Wheat bran or oat hay 10 " 

oats 6 " Oats 5 " 

Cottonseed-meal 1 " Gluten feed 4 " 

It must be remembered that, no matter what the feeds 
used to supply the protein, carbohydrate and fat, there must 
also be a certain amount of roughage in the ration. All 
browsing or grazing animals require bulky feed, and can not 
thrive on concentrated material alone. 

7. Producing Clean Milk 

Milk is perfectly clean as it comes from the cow. It is 
easily tainted, however, either by filth that may 'fall into 
the pail during the milking, or from dirty utensils. Dirty 
milk makes dissatisfied customers, endangers the health of 
users, especially children, hastens souring, makes a lower 
grade of butter, and indicates shiftlessness and low stand- 
ards of dairying. 

The cow barn. — ^The cow barn should be constructed 
for the comfort, cleanliness and hygiene of its occupants. 
It should be well ventilated and have plenty of light. The 
floor should be of some hard material, preferably cement, 
and water-tight. The stalls should be the right length for 
the cfbws, and have a shallow gutter at the rear with slope 




■""^i-ptve-ii?"' uj -Hood Harm. I8974& 
---_i^ ..j-LmwEu. .Mass. 

A cliiuintion Jprsey cow with a butter-fat record of 009.14 
pouuds iu oOu days. 




A champion Shorthorn cow. a general purpose breed adapted 
both to beef and uiillj production. 



CATTLE 285 

enough toward one end to permit drainage. Instead of a 
feed manger in front, there should be a Hquid-tight trough, 
also with a slight slope, that it may be washed out. All 
floors should be kept thoroughly washed by means of a 
hose and stiff brushes. 

Cleanliness in milking. — Before the milking is begun, 
both the cow and the milker should be clean. If the cow 
is dusty, the dust should be well brushed out. The udder 
should be wiped clean, washed, or sponged off, as may be 
required. The milker's hands should be freshly cleansed, as 
it is almost impossible to keep the milk from touching them. 

Special suits should be kept for milking, and should be 
frequently washed. The practise of putting on old, greasy 
and unwashed clothes, simply to save soiling other garments 
while milking, is too filthy to be permitted in any dairy. 
All utensils should be kept in a perfectly clean place, and 
well scalded once each day. 

A careful analysis of the dirt contained in milk shows 
about nine-tenths of it to be cow manure. The other tenth 
is hair from the cow, dirt from the cow or the milker, par- 
ticles of the feed used, and disease germs from the cow or 
hands of the milker. No dairyman should ask a consumer 
to eat such an array of filth as this. 

Straining the milk. — Much of the dirt that gets into 
the milk can not be strained out, since it fully dissolves and 
will pass through the strainer as easily as the milk itself, 
A good strainer will, however, remove a considerable por- 
tion of the insoluble matter. 

A wire mesh strainer should never be used. The strainer 
should be cone-shaped, with gauze and absorbent cotton 
forming the outlet. One thickness of the cotton is placed 
between four thicknesses of gauze, two on each side, and 
held in place by a ring which fits over the edges and at- 
taches it to the bottom of the receotacle. The cotton should 



286 



AGRICULTURE 



be destroyed after each straining, and never used a second 
time. The additional expense for this type of strainer is 
slight, and should keep no progressive dairyman from us- 
ing it. 

Cooling the milk. — After cleanliness, the next essen- 
tial to good care of milk is quick cooling. So important 
is quick cooling to prevent souring of milk and keep it in 




Auchenbrain Brown Kate 4th, Ayrshire cow with a 365-day 
butter-fat record of 917.6 pounds. 

good condition that a higher price is often paid for milk 
properly cooled than for uncooled milk. 

For the best results some form of cooling apparatus is 
necessary. Various machines for this purpose can be had 
for from ten to twenty-five dollars. An average of about 
five cents' worth of ice is required for each hundred pounds 
of milk during the warm months. j\Iilk should be cooled 
down to forty-five degrees in a few minutes of time. 



CATTLE 287 

8. Beef Breeds 

Larger profit can be secured from dairy than from beef 
cattle with the same amount of feed, but dairy animals re- 
quire a much greater amount of labor and a more costly 
equipment. The work necessary to care for fifteen or 
twenty dairy cows will be sufficient to tend two hundred 
beef animals. Properly managed, the raising and feeding 
of cattle for beef can be made highly profitable. 

The beef-producing type. — Beef and dairy cattle 
differ widely in their type. For the production of beef, 
the animal must be able to use a large proportion of its 
food in the putting on of flesh; it must also have a form 
capable of holding a large amount of muscle and fat. 

The beef animal should have a conformation that (1) 
favors the production and carrying of flesh ; (2) supplies 
the best proportion of good cuts of meat on the block ; (3) 
indicates good constitution and feeding capacity. 

The form of beef animals. — Instead of the wedge con- 
formation of the dairy cow, beef cattle should in their shape 
present a series of rectangles; that is, they should be 
"blocky." The body is reasonably long, and deep, with 
short sturdy legs. The whole form presents a plump, full- 
shaped appearance. The back is broad and straight, with 
ribs well arched to give breadth to the body. The quarters 
are well filled and thick. The skin is pliable, rather thick, 
and the coat smooth and glossy. 

Judging beef cattle with the score-card. — Because of 
the difference in type between dairy and beef cattle, it is 
best to use separate score-cards in judging them. Secure a 
score-card from your state college of agriculture or the 
United States Department of Agriculture. After studying 
it and judging one or more animals under the direction of 
the teacher, each member of the class should judge several 

20 



CATTLE 289 

beef animals from the home herd, asking his father to help 
in the judging. 

Beef breeds. — Among the chief breeds of beef cattle in 
the United States are Shorthorns, or Durhams, Herefords, 
Aberdeen-Angus, and Galloways. Several different breeds 
have also developed a polled, or hornless, type. Except for 
the lack of horns, the polled breeds closely resemble the par- 
ent breed from which they were derived. 

Feeding beef cattle. — Feeding grain and roughage 
to beef cattle is a more profitable way to market them than 
to sell them off the farm. In this way the fertility of the 
soil is also conserved, and better crops produced. 

The fattening ration for cattle is slightly different from 
the dairy ration, the nutrient ratio for beef being 1 : 7, as 
against 1 : 6 for milk production. This is to say, that the 
fattening animal should have a balanced ration consisting 
of one part protein food for every seven parts of carbohy- 
drates and fats. 

9. Tuberculosis in Cattle 

Tuberculosis is a common disease among cattle. It is 
more common among dairy cattle than beef cattle. This is 
probably because dairy cows are kept to a greater age than 
beef cattle, and are more closely confined in barns. The 
effects of tuberculosis in a dairy herd are (1) lowered milk 
production and final loss of the tuberculous animal by death, 
and (2) danger of giving the disease to people, especially 
children, who use the milk. 

Prevalence of tuberculosis in herds. — There is no 
way of telling the exact number of cattle affected by tuber- 
culosis, as comparatively few herds are examined for the 
disease. It is not uncommon to find as high as seventy to 
eighty per cent, of the cows in a herd diseased, some with 



290 AGRICULTURE 

the disease just starting, others with it well along, and still 
others in the last Stages. Since tuberculosis is contagious, 
it is evident that when it once gets started in a herd it is 
hard to stamp out. 

The tuberculin test. — It is impossible to make certain 
of the presence or absence of tuberculosis in a herd by any 
set of symptoms. The only sure way is by the tuberculin 
test. This test is required by law of all dairy herds in a 
number of states. Experts have shown that tuberculin, if 
properly used, will reveal the presence of tuberculosis in at 
least ninety-eight per cent, of the cases. 

Tuberculin is a fluid in which tubercle germs have been 
grown, but from which they have all been removed. This 
fluid is injected with a hypodermic needle under the skin 
of all the animals of a herd which is being tested. It will 
not injure well animals nor give them the disease. Animals 
that have tuberculosis reveal this fact by a feverish condi- 
tion, which arises from eight to twelve hours after the tu- 
berculin is administered. Well animals show no such re- 
action. 

Suppressing tuberculosis in cattle. — Little can be 
done in the way of treatment to cure tuberculosis in cattle. 
Those that have contracted it in a mild form often recover. 
Animals found to be well advanced with the disease should 
at once be slaughtered. All diseased stock should be sep- 
arated from well animals, and kept in different barns and 
pastures. 

The milk from mildly diseased cows may be used, pro- 
viding it is first carefully pasteurised. To pasteurize milk, 
it is kept at a temperature of one hundred and forty-nine 
degrees for twenty minutes, or one hundred and seventy- 
six degrees for five minutes. This heating is sufficient to 
kill the germs of the tuberculosis. 



CATTLE 291 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Are the cattle on your home farm of dairy breed, 
beef breed, or "general purpose" breed? Talk with your 
father and learn the lineage of each of your milk cows. 
Are they "blooded," "grade," or "scrub" stock? Is your 
herd being "selected" toward any pure breed? 

2. Is the milk produced by your cows weighed and 
tested for butter-fat? If so, how does the record of the 
herd compare with the herds referred to in the chap- 
ter? If no tests are being made, talk with your father about 
getting the apparatus for the Babcock test. After making 
the test under the direction of the teacher, bring samples 
of milk from home and make the test for several of your 
cows with the school tester. 

3. Weigh the milk produced by each of your cows for a 
week, keeping a careful record. Now have your father 
help you estimate what each cow will produce during one 
year, taking into account the length of time each one milks, 
and the changes due to season, etc. 

4. Weigh carefully the feed that is regularly given 
one of your cows for one day. Compare with the sample 
rations shown in the chapter. Are you feeding a balanced 
ration? If not, in which nutrient is it short? What should 
be done? 

5. Make a careful study of the distinguishing marks of 
each of the chief dairy breeds, and learn to identify dif- 
ferent breeds at sight. 

6. Consider the conditions of your home dairy barn. 
Has it plenty of light? Is it well ventilated? Are the 
stalls the right length for the cows ? Is the floor tight ? Are 
the rear gutter and the feed trough of a good type ? Is the 
barn clean ? Does it smell bad ? 

7. What steps are taken in your dairy toward 
cleaning the cows each time before milking? Do the cows 
get soiled from the stalls? Are the milkers' hands washed 
before milking? What kind of a strainer do you use? Is 
your milk clean when it is ready for cooling. 

8. Has your state a law requiring the tuberculin test 
for dairy herds? Has your father's herd had the test? 



292 AGRICULTURE 

If so, how often is the test applied? With what results? 
Have you any cows with a cough? With coats that look 
rough and dead? Are any of your cows losing in flesh or 
amount of milk without seeming cause? Have any of them 
lumps in their udders? All these things are symptoms of 
tuberculosis. 

9. Write an essay on how to improve dairy conditions 
and profits in your region. 

10. Show how to keep a book account with the cattle 
interests of the farm. 

11. Indicate on the map of the United States the dairy 
and beef producing sections. Consult the last census report 
and insert in each state the amount of beef and dairy pro- 
duction. 

10. Demonstrations as Related to Cattle 

1. Demonstrate how to make a butter- fat test with a 
milk-testing machine. 

2. Demonstrate by the use of the blackboard or chart a 
good and a poor dairy type of cattle. 

3. Show by drawing or chart a good type of beef cat- 
tle. Diagram the beef unit so as to show the various grades 
of meat. 

4. Show how to keep a record of the Babcock test for 
butter-fat for five cows. 

5. Demonstrate how to cool milk and cream. 

Other demonstrations can be carried on in connection 
with the cattle industry, such as butter making, cheese mak- 
ing, showing the use of milk in various kinds of food, pas- 
teurizing milk, cleaning cows, mixing various types of feed 
and making tuberculin tests. 

11. Cattle Play Contests 

1. Cattle judging contest. 

2. Breed naming contest. 

3. Record keeping contest. 




t 



A 
< 



294 AGRICULTURE 

4. Milking contest. 

5. Story writing contest on "Origin and History of 
Cattle" and other kindred subjects. 

12. Cattle Club Projects 

There are three very practical and interesting club 
projects possible in connection with this subject. The first 
and most important perhaps is the dairy club, where club 
members agree to test for butter-fat a certain number of 
dairy cows or the entire herd on their father's farm. The 
basis of award may be as follows: 

1. Number of cows tested 30 

2. Records and helpful deductions 30 

3. Skill in making test, shown in demonstration 20 

4. Essay "How To Make the Test, Its Importance to Dairy- 

Farmers" 20 

Total score 100 

The baby beef club project. — The object of this pro- 
ject is to encourage the production of beef cattle and to 
teach the proper methods of management and feeding of 
beef stock so as to secure the maximum returns for money, 
time and energy expended. The baby beef club member 
should be required to take a calf at a certain age, a yearling, 
or two-year-old, and care for it, keeping a record of all ex- 
penditures, daily rations, and cost of feed for six months 
or a year, with a view to showing maximum results from 
the management for the beef market. It is advisable as far 
as possible to have members grow their own feed, or at least 
a part of it, and to keep an accurate account of the cost of 
production of this feed as applied to the baby beef club 
project work. The basis of award may be as follows : 



CATTLE 295 

1. Condition of beef at end of period, judged by score-card 

of beef standard cattle . 36 

2. Net profit and cost of production 30 

3. Records and story on the club project 20 

4. Selection of breed for beef purposes 20 

Total score 100 

Dairy record club project. — The object of this club 
project is first to teach methods of keeping accurate rec- 
ords of cost of management, feed, pastures, and milk pro- 
duction for each individual cow in the dairy herd, and to 
teach through these records the difference between a prof- 
itable dairy cow and a "boarder." 

It is possible to combine the dairy herd club project 
with the butter-fat testing work. The basis of award in 
this particular club project may be : 

1. Number of cows of which complete records were kept 30 

2. Condition of records, neatness, accuracy, etc 30 

3. Conclusions and valuable recommendations 20 

4. Oral or written discussion of "How I Kept My Rec- 

ords" 20 

Total score 100 



CHAPTER XX 
HORSES 

MORE than twenty million horses are to be found on 
the farms of the United States. These horses on the 
farms alone are worth the enormous sum of two and a 
quarter billion dollars, or more than all our cattle, both 
dairy and beef. The raising of horses is therefore one of 
the leading industries connected with agriculture. 

1. The Leading Horse Raising States 
Slightly more than fifty-two per cent, of all the horses 
found on the farms of this country are raised in the follow- 
ing ten states : Iowa, Illinois, Texas, Kansas, Missouri, Ne- 
braska, Ohio, Indiana, Minnesota and Oklahoma. The farms 
of Iowa and Illinois support approximately one and one-half 
million horses for each state ; Texas, 'Kansas, JMissouri and 
Nebraska have more than a million each, and Ohio, Indiana, 
J\Iinnesota and Oklahoma, more than three-fourths of a 
million each. 

Proportion supplied by each state. — ^The proportion 
of all the horses found on our farms which is supplied by 
each of these ten leading horse states is shown in the fol- 
lowing chart: 

Iowa 7.05% 

Illinois 7.0% 

Texas 5.5% 

Kansas 5.0% 

Missouri 5.0% 

Nebraska 5.0% 

Ohio 4.4% 

Indiana 4.2% 

Minnesota 4.1% 

Oklahoma 3.7% 

296 



HORSES 297 

Horses are adapted to a wide range of climates, and can 
be successfully produced in every state. The market for 
horses is good and, under skilful management, they can be 
be raised with profit on almost all farms. 

1. Make a list of all the horses on your farm, and 
have your father help you estimate the value of each. Now 
compare the value of your horses with the value of your 
cattle ; your hogs ; your sheep. 

2. After each member of the class has made the com- 
putation asked in No. 1, put all the results together and 
make similar comparisons for the value of different farm 
stock for all farms represented. Compare the relative val- 
ues of horses, cattle and hogs for your region with the rela- 
tive values of these animals for the entire country, taking 
the necessary figures from the respective chapters of this 
book. 

2. Classes of Horses 

Class and grade. — Regardless of breed, horses are 
classed in the markets according to the uses to which they 
are suited. The different classes are : draft horses, chunks, 
wagon horses, carriage horses, road horses, saddle horses 
and ponies. Animals are graded within each class as choice, 
good, medium, common and inferior. The class to which 
a horse belongs depends on (1) weight, (2) height, and 
(3) conformation, or build, and (4) quality. 

Draft horses. — To be in the draft class a horse in 
good flesh must weigh from one thousand six hundred 
pounds to more than a ton. The height ranges from 15-2 
to 17-3 hands. The form of draft horses is broad, com- 
pact and rugged, with legs short as compared with the 
depth of the body. This build brings the weight close to 
the ground, where it can exert the greatest power in draw- 
ing a load. Draft horses are used largely for city teaming, 
for logging and the like. 



298 



AGRICULTURE 



Chunks. — The form of this class of horses is indicated 
by their name. Chunks are heavy-set, short legged, com- 
pactly built horses, of lighter weight than draft horses. 
Their weight varies from eight hundred pounds among the 
lightest of the southern chunks to one thousand five hundred 
and fifty pounds in the North and East. The height is from 




A pair of draft liorses. 

15 to 15-3 hands. The typical farm horse belongs to the 
chunk class. 

Wagon horses. — Wagon horses are required to com- 
bine weight with action and endurance. City delivery and 
express, fire and artillery horses are selected from this 
class. They must have sound feet ; strong clean legs ; broad 
deep chests ; and show good constitution and quality. Their 
weight is from one thousand and fifty pounds to one thou- 




A fiue tj'pe of draft liorse. 




A good pair of cLuBks, and their offspring by pure-bred sires. 



300 



AGRICULTURE 



sand seven hundred pounds; and their height from 15 to 
17-2 hands. 

Carriage horses. — The carriage, or heavy harness, 
class are required to have good action, a fair amount of 
speed, and to be of a pleasing, stylish form and carriage. 
The head should be small, and well-set, on a long arching 
neck. The body should be smooth and rounded, the back 
short and well coupled, with a long level croup, and the 




A good team of heavy carriage horses, showiug fiue character 
and action. 



hindquarters strong and well developed. The height ranges 
from 14-1 to 16-2 hands, and the weight from nine hundred 
pounds to one thousand two hundred and fifty pounds. 
The carriage class supply the coach, park and cab 
horses. 

Road horses. — Road or light harness horses arc 
lighter in build, more angular in form, and possess better 
action than the carriage class. They must have good speed, 
life and quality. They are used for light and fancy driving, 
and for racing:. Their weight is from nine hundred to one 



HORSES 



301 



thousand one hundred and fifty pounds, and their height 
from 14-3 to 16 hands. 

Saddle horses. — Saddle horses are built for ease of 
action, strength and sureness of foot. They are also re- 
quired to have mettle, coupled with a good disposition and 
intelligence. The withers are high and thin, and the shoul- 
ders oblique. The back must be short, well muscled, and 







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A good saddle horse. 

strongly coupled, and the gait easy. The height runs from 
fourteen hands for polo ponies to sixteen hands for hunters 
or cavalry horses. The weight may vary from eight hun- 
dred and fifty to one thousand two hundred and fifty pounds. 
Ponies. — Ponies are chiefly used for children, and 
must therefore first of all have good dispositions. To be 
in the pony class, the height must be under fourteen hands. 



302 AGRICULTURE 

The body is deep and well rounded, the legs and neck are 
short, the croup is level, and the quarters are strong and well 
developed. 

These different classes of horses often merge into one 
another so that it is difficult to tell in which of two classes a 
certain animal belongs. For market purposes it pays to 
breed for well marked classes, as these always bring higher 
prices than .mixed stock. 

1. Study each horse on your home farm, and decide 
the class to which it belongs. If the type is not clearly 
marked in any case, decide what two classes it resembles. 

2. Also grade each horse as choice, good, medium, com- 
mon, or inferior in its class. Remember that to be "choice" 
the animal must be entirely sound, in good condition, and 
possess in the highest degree the ideal qualities of its class. 
The "inferior" grade is the very worst of its class. The 
other grades lie in between these two extremes. 

3. Breeds of Horses 

While the breed to which a horse belongs has little 
bearing on its market value if the class marks are strong 
and the grade high, yet the only way to secure class and 
grade is by pure breeding. Millions of dollars are being 
lost by American farmers every year through the breed- 
ing of grade or scrub horses. 

The value of breeding. — An excellent illustration of 
the difference in market value between pure-bred and grade- 
bred horses is shown in the case of Wisconsin horses (Bui. 
186, Wis. Ag. Exp. Sta.) : 

Average value of horses by ages 



4 to 6 
months 1 year 2 years 3 years 4 years 



From pure-bred sires__-$78.77 $132.84 $196.84 $218.00 $303.00 

From grade sires 51.25 85.00 127.50 156.45 200.20 

Difference in favor of 

pure-bred sires 27.52 47.84 59.34 61.55 i02.80 



HORSES 



303 



This table is very convincing when it is remembered 
that it costs no more in care and feed to raise a well-bred 
horse than a scrub. The farmer who uses only pure-bred 
sires for his breeding will get almost fifty dollars more for 
his colts as yearlings than if he uses grade sires, while if he 




A typical Perclieron. 

does not sell until the colt has reached maturity he will 
receive at least one hundred dollars more. If pure-bred 
dams are also used, the difference will be greater still. Will 
it not pay well to "breed up" our horses ? 

Draft breeds. — The chief breeds of draft horses in the 
United States have been imported from Europe. The fa- 
vorite of these is the Percheron, which comes from France. 



304 AGRICULTURE 

The Percherons have good spirit, are strong-boned, and 
have sound feet. They show good action, have a high 
degree of intelligence, and respond well to training. 

The Clydesdales come from Scotland. They are longer 
in build than Percherons, have smaller bodies, and less rug- 




Typical of the American trotter breed. 

ged constitutions. They are strongly marked by a heavy 
growth of hair on the lower part of the leg, especially at 
the fetlock. For use in wet and muddy times this excess 
of hair is a disadvantage, since it is hard to keep dry and 
clean. 

The Belgians come to us from Belgium, and the English 



HORSES 305 

Shires from England. Both are excellent breeds, though 
they have not yet come into the favor enjoyed by the Per- 
cherons, or even the Clydesdales. 

It is chiefly from the heavier breeds that come all our 
draft horses, chunks, wagon horses, and carriage, or heavy 
harness horses. A comparatively small proportion of horses 
in any of these classes is as yet pure bred, most being a 
cross with grade or common stock. 

The lighter breeds. — Relatively few farmers have 
undertaken the raising of the lighter and speedier breeds of 
horses. This has been left to special breeders and stock 
farms that make a specialty of horses. The heavier breeds 
are better adapted to the farm, since the dams can then be 
used for general farm work, and thus serve a double pur- 
pose and thereby add to the profit. 

Among the lighter breeds raised in this country, the 
English Hackney, the French Coach, and the German Coach 
are the favorites for the carriage class. For lighter road 
use the breeds most favored are the American Trotter, the 
American Saddle horse and the English Thoroughbred. 

4. Judging Horses 

The horse is to many people the most interesting animal 
on the farm. The satisfaction and profit from horse raising 
depend very largely on the breed, class and grade. For 
these reasons all who are interested in farm animals should 
learn to judge horses readily and accurately. 

The score-card. — Before undertaking to use the score- 
card in actual judging, the pupil must become thoroughly 
familiar with all its points, understanding fully the re- 
quirements for a perfect score under any point. With this 
ideal in mind, the animal is to be examined, and the score 
put down on the card. Do not be afraid to mark off for 



306 AGRICULTURE 

all bad points. It takes a good animal to grade eighty per 
cent, when marked by an expert judge, and an exceptional 
one to grade ninety per cent. 'J^clg^s do not usually mark 
closer than 'one-fourth per cent, on any point. 

5. Common Defects and Unsoundness in Horses 

Any defect or unsoundness lowers the value of a horse. 
All who have to do with horses should be able to identify 
the more common faults, and know their causes. (See Pur- 
due Circular, No. 29.) 

Defects of head, eyes and ears — 

1. Poll evil; sore on top of head, caused by bruises. 

2. Blindness; either with or without defects of eyeball. 

3. "Blue-eyed"; a peculiar bluish color, may indicate blind- 

ness. 

4. Over-mobile ears; showing viciousness or blindness. 

5. Immobile ears; showing deafness or lockjaw. 
Defects of the mouth — 

1. Nose discharge; indicating catarrh, glanders, diseased 

molars. 

2. Bit sores, showing tender mouth, or abuse. 

3. Diseased molars; afifect health and interfere with eating. 

4. "Parrot" mouth; upper jaw too long, front teeth project 

over lower. 

5. Undershot jaw; lower jaw short; front teeth do not meet. 

6. Clipped tongue; tip cut ofif to prevent lolling. 
Defects of neck, withers and shoulders — 

1. Neck sores; caused by collar wear on top of neck. 

2. Fistula; running sore on withers on shoulders. 

3. Collar sores and boils; dirty and ill-fitting collars. 
Defects of feet and legs — 

1. Shoe boil; sore at elbow from injury by shoe while lying 

down; also sore from harness band. 

2. Splint; (describe.) 

3. Broken knee; bent backward from injury. 

4. Buck knee; bent forward from stififening of tendons. 

5. Capped knee; (what is meant?) 

«. Greased heel; sores which refuse to heal. 



HORSES 307 

7. Scratches; sores under fetlocks from filth or dampness. 

8. Windgalls; puffs around fetlock joint from hard driving 

or standing on hard floors. 

9. Cocked ankles; ankles bent forward from misuse. 

10. Navicular disease; contracted foot, favored in action. 

11. Toe cracks; transverse checks across the hoof. 

12. Quarter racks; split in hoof extending up to heel. 

13. Corns; (vvrhat? where?) (describe cause.) 

14. Thrush. 

15. Knocked-down hip; one hip lower than the other from 

blow. 

16. Spavin; either bog, or bone, indicating sprain or injury. 

17. Thorough-pin; (describe cause.) 

18. Curb; enlargement at back of hock from sprain. 
General defects — 

1. St. Vitus's Dance; twitching of muscles. 

2. Crampness; tendency for muscles to cramp. 

3. Stringhalt; one or both hind feet lifted too high. 

4. Roaring; a wheezing, roaring sound in breathing; from 

bad wind. 

5. Heaves; spasmodic breathing. 
Vices — 

1. Cribbing; habit of biting mangers, posts, etc., caused by 

teeth trouble. 

2. Windsucking; habit of biting, and at the same time suck- 

ing in air. 

3. Halter pulling; habit of pulling back when tied. 

4. Biting; vicious tendency to bite people or other horses. 

5. Balking; refusing to move when commanded. 

6. Rolling in stall; likely to become "cast" and cause in- 

jury. 

7. Kicking; showing vicious temper. 

8. Striking; with front feet to injure attendant. 

6. The Care of Horses 

The horse is the most intelligent and companionable of 
the farm animals. It quickly shows the effects of ill treat- 
ment or lack of care and, on the other hand, easily responds 
to training and good usage. 



308 AGRICULTURE 

Unsoundness due to ill usuage. — Not a few of the 
defects common to horses should be blamed to their own- 
ers or users. For example, poll evil is frequently caused by 
striking the head against a door or stall beam that is too 
low. Bit sores indicate either a careless or a cruel driver, or a 
bit unsuited to the horse on which it is used. Neck and 
shoulder sores seldom occur if the collar is a good fit, and if 
kept clean. Fistula on withers on shoulders comes from 
collar bruises. Sweeny is the result of a wrench or strain, 
often due to ill-fitting collars. 

In similar way, splints, spavins, curbs, thorough-pins and 
other injuries to the legs are often caused by excessive driv- 
ing or pulling, especially of young horses. Misshapen knees 
and ankles are an evidence of hard usage. Greased heel, 
thrush and scratches come from damp and filthy stalls. 
Roaring is the result of driving until the wind is "broken" ; 
heaves usually come from eating dusty feed ; cribbing is a 
sign of the neglect of teeth that need attention. 

The effect of training, — The vices which reduce the 
value of many horses and make them unpleasant to handle 
are usually due fully as much to training as disposition. 
Halter pulling commonly begins in the colt being frightened 
and made to break loose when tied, or else being tied with 
an old and easily broken halter that encourages pulling on 
it. Balking often indicates lack of intelligence and patience 
on the part of the trainer fully as much as stubbornness on 
the part of the horse. Biting may be started by teas- 
ing; and kicking often has its beginning in fright from 
something loose about the harness or vehicle before the colt 
is well broken. 

Treatment of horses. — The horse should be treated 
with kindness and firmness. The driver who strikes or 
jerks because of his anger or petulance deserves the con- 



HORSES 



309 



tempt of all lovers of animal life, and should not be en- 
trusted with horses. One who will work a team in the 
heat and dust and then allow them to stand over night with- 
out cleaning shows either lack of intelligence about horses or 
cruelty. To drive a team until they are sweaty and then 
allow them to stand in a cold wind unblanketed reveals not 
only heartlessness but bad business management. 

The horse can not be taught like a person. Therefore, 




A horse market, showing a tyiDe of horse for which there is a 
good demand. 



only one single word of command should ever be used for 
the same act. Whoa should always mean an immediate and 
dead stop ; back should mean to step backward, and not 
merely to stop. Some 07ie signal alone should be used to 
start, and the horse never allowed to start without this sig- 
nal. Care in such simple points as these would result in 
much better broken and safer horses. 



310 AGRICULTURE 

7. Feeding Horses 

The feeding of farm work horses is a different prob- 
lem from the feeding of most other farm stock. This is 
because the horse is fed for work, while other animals are 
. fed for meat, milk, eggs and so on. 

The ration for horses. — The ordinary farm ration for 
working horses is some form of hay for roughage, and 
one or more cereals, such as oats or com. The particular 
kind of hay fed is not important, so that it is in good con- 
dition and free from dust. If dusty hay must be used, it 
should be sprinkled with water as it is fed. Horses seem 
to find timothy hay more palatable than most other kinds, 
but red clover, alfalfa, meadow fescue and other meadow 
grasses have been found satisfactory. It is thought that less 
grain is necessary to keep up the weight of horses at hard 
work when alfalfa is fed instead of some other hay. 

Grain ration for farm horses. — Oats are the choice of 
the cereals for horses wherever they are obtainable. They 
are relished better than most grains, and seem especially 
suited to the horse as a nutrient. Horses fed on oats also 
seem to show better mettle than those fed on other grains. 

In the corn producing region corn is usually a more 
economical feed for horses than oats, and has therefore 
come into quite general use as a part of the ration. Corn 
and alfalfa hay make a satisfactory ration, at least for a 
limited time, and are cheaper than oats and timothy hay. 
A very satisfactory and rather heavy daily ration for a 
horse weighing from one thousand two hundred to one 
thousand three hundred pounds, and employed at general 
farm labor is: 

7^2 pounds of whole corn. 
7% pounds of whole oats. 
1 pound of oil meal. 
3 pounds of wheat bran. 



HORSES 311 

lYi pounds of timothy hay. 
lYz pounds of clover hay. 

Other rations that have been proved satisfactory by 
experiment are as follows : 

1. Corn, 6 pounds ; gluten feed, 6 pounds ; bran, 2 pounds ; 

timothy hay, 10 pounds. 

2. Corn, 8 pounds ; bran, 7 pounds ; timothy hay, 10 pounds. 

3. Oats, 6 pounds ; corn, 4 pounds ; bran, 2 pounds ; haj^ 12 

pounds. 

These rations are the amount that should be fed daily 
to a horse weighing- from one thousand two hundred to one 
thousand three hundred pounds when at work. Larger 
horses should receive more, and smaller horses less, accord- 
ing to weight. It is also to be noted that some horses re- 
quire more feed than others of the same weight. 

How to feed. — For horses with good teeth it is not 
essential whether the grain is ground or fed whole, except 
that the same amount will yield somewhat more nourish- 
ment if ground. This difference may sometimes be as much 
as one per cent, in favor of ground feed. On days when 
work horses are allowed to stand idle the amount of grain 
should be reduced about one-half. If the idleness contin- 
ues beyond three or four days, the amount of grain may 
gradually be increased, but should not reach the full work 
ration. 

Most of the hay should be fed at night and in the morn- 
ing, as there is not time at noon to secure the necessary 
nourishment from roughage. The noon feed of grain may 
be slightly heavier than that for night or morning. About 
twice as long is required for horses to eat ground grain 
fed dry as when it is dampened. 

Watering horses. — Much prejudice exists concerning 
the best time for watering horses, some preferring to water 
before feeding, and others after. Careful experiments have 



312 AGRICULTURE 

shown that the time of watering is not highly important. 
If horses come from the field thirsty, it is reasonable to 
suppose that they will relish their meal better if they have 
had a drink. If the feed consists largely of dry roughage 
it also seems best to water before feeding. Whatever sys- 
tem is adopted should be followed regularly, as changing 
about often injures the appetite or produces some other de- 
rangement. Horses should never be given a large amount 
of water when highly heated from working or driving. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. What breeds of horses are favored in your region? 
Let each student find out just what breeds are represented 
in the horses on his home farm, with the percentage of 
pure-bred blood in each animal. Sum up the results for the 
entire district. 

2. If it costs fifteen dollars more to sire from pure-bred 
than grade horses, what would be the net gain by using 
pure-bred rather than grade sires in raising for market two 
teams and selling them at four years of age on the basis 
shown in the table on page 302 ? 

3. After studying the score-card for judging draft 
horses and judging one or more animals under the direc- 
tion of the teacher, judge independently at least two other 
horses, having your work tested and criticized by the 
teacher or other competent judge. 

4. Master thoroughly the list of defects common to 
horses, and then watch for an example of each on dif- 
ferent animals until you have learned to identify any un- 
soundness at sight. Examine carefully each horse at your 
home for unsoundness. 

5. Write a detailed account of the care that should be 
given a working team each day, including stall, feeding, 
watering, cleaning, blanketing, and so on. 

6. Weigh the ordinary daily ration fed one of your 
working horses and compare with the rations suggested in 



HORSES 313 

the chapter. At current prices, just what does it cost a day 
to feed one of your work horses ? 

7. Show how to keep a bookkeeping record of the 
cost of keeping, feeding, and use of a team of heavy draft 
horses for farm purposes, covering a period of six months 
through the working season. 

8. Show upon the map of the United States the ap- 
proximate number of horses in each state. Secure records 
from the last census report on horses. Where were the 
wild horses originally found ? Where are horses now raised 
on ranges? 

8. Demonstrations With the Horse 

1. Demonstrate how to halter-break a colt. 

2. The proper method of judging a horse. 

3. Show how to handle a buggy horse; harness, hitch 
and start. 

4. Demonstrate the proper method of mounting a sad- 
dle horse, with or without the saddle. * 

5. The proper method of currying a horse, training the 
mane, and tying up the tail for muddy roads. 

6. Demonstrate miscellaneous interests in horseman- 
ship. In this particular case contestants may be allowed 
to bring their own horses and demonstrate values and tricks 
such as prompt obedience to master's command, and pe- 
culiar and valuable traits of their animals. 

7. Demonstrate the practical rope knots and splicings 
of especial value in the handling of horses, such as the hal- 
ter-hitch, clove-hitch, slipknot and timber-hitch. 

8. Demonstrate how to harness and hitch a team to a 
double wagon. 

All of the above demonstrations should not only show 
skill, accuracy and speed, but kindness in the handling of 
the animals. 



314 AGRICULTURE 

9. The Horse Play Contests 

1. Horse mounting contest, judged by skill, largest 
number of mountings in five minutes and showing of kind- 
ness to animal in mounting. 

2. Horse judging contest, driving contest in single, 
double, or four-horse team, 

3. Oral story, giving the life history of the horse. 

4. Essay writing contest on the subject: "The Horse 
and Its Relation to Agriculture." 

5. Recipe and remedy giving contest, showing the 
proper methods of treatment for unsoundness, defects, blem- 
ishes and vices of the horse. 

6. Description and recognition of defects and blemishes 
with causes. 

10. Colt Club Project 

The object of organizing a colt club is to get boys and 
girls interested in the raising and proper management of 
colts as an economic factor on the farm. The work should 
cover a period of not less than twelve months in the man- 
agement, feeding and keeping of records of a colt. The 
basis of award should be as follows : 

1. Management shown by training of colt 25 

2. The cost of keeping '. 25 

3. Condition of the colt or horse 25 

4. Story of "My Year's Work with the Colt" 25 

Total score 100 



CHAPTER XXI 
SWINE 

HOGS outrank every other farm animal in number in the 
United States, and are exceeded in value only by 
horses and cattle. There are more than sixty million hogs 
on our farms, or nearly two porkers for every three of the 
population. The aggregate market value of swine is about 
two-thirds that of dairy cattle, and not far from equal to 
the value of beef cattle. American farmers own more than 
six hundred million dollars' worth of hogs. 

1. The Pork Prodiicifig Region 

A large proportion of our hogs is produced in the 
states forming the corn belt. This is natural, since com 
is one of the cheapest and best grains for raising pork. 
Many other regions can grow hogs as successfully as the 
corn states, however, and the industry is spreading. 

Hogs in the South. — Southern farmers have not yet 
entered very largely upon the raising of hogs, though they 
can probably be produced fully as cheaply in the South as 
the North. The southern people consume more meat per 
capita than the people of any other section. Millions of 
pounds of fresh meats are annually shipped to southern 
markets from northern and western farms. This means a 
double loss to the South, hence the importance of a more 
general study of the swine industry. For money is paid 
out for what could well be raised at home, and a most prof- 
itable industry is thus omitted from the farms. 

315 



316 AGRICULTURE 

The leading states in hog production. — Sixty per cent. 

of all our pork is raised in ten states. In the order of their 
importance in pork production these states are: Iowa, Illi- 
nois, Missouri, Nebraska, Indiana, Ohio, Kansas, Texas, 
Wisconsin, Georgia. The percentage each of these supplies 
of all hogs produced in the United States is shown in the 
following chart: 

Iowa 13.4% 

Illinois 7.57o 

Missouri 6.7% 

Nebraska 6.2% 

Indiana 6.1% 

Ohio 5.2% 

Kansas 4.3% 

Texas 4.1% 

Wisconsin 3.3% 

Georgia 3.1% 

The number of swine in these .<?tates runs from about 
two million in Georgia to nine million in Iowa. 

2. Breeds of Hogs 

Many of our important breeds of cattle and horses orig- 
inated in Europe, but we have ourselves developed nearly 
all our chief breeds of hogs. The breeds most favored in 
the United States are Poland-China, Duroc-Jersey, Ches- 
ter-White and Berkshire. The Berkshire, the only imported 
breed, came from England. Other less well-known breeds 
are the Yorkshire, Cheshire, Suffolk, Hampshire and Essex. 

Poland-China. — Poland-China has long been a favorite 
breed of hogs, especially in the corn states. They are black 
in color, with irregular white markings on almost every 
part of the body. The ears are drooping. The Poland- 
Chinas make a rapid growth, and reach good size. They 
are rather small of bone, and not so good foragers as some 



SWINE 



317 



other breeds. Some fault has been found with them for 
not producing larger litters. 

Duroc-Jersey. — The Duroc-Jerseys are easily recog- 
nized by their reddish color. They are one of the most 
prolific and vigorous breeds, somewhat slow in develop- 
ing, and strong of frame. Their bones are large, and 




A Sue Duroc-Jersey sow. 



they reach good size and weight. They have large droop- 
ing ears, are good foragers, and thrive well on pasturage, 
or when following a herd of fattening cattle. 

Chester-White. — The Chester-White breed are of 
large frame, rather slow in maturing, and possess good 
constitutions. They are white without markings, and have 
drooping ears. They are raised more in New England than 
in the corn region. 




A Chester-White sow in show condition. 







_ 




< ', 


iil'WP f--- 11 iiiiTWI^^ 


^^ ™ 


SlSifeSKi'^fcA^T" 




^m 


^H 






^^BH 




1 


H 






iihPM 


t 


^ 


1 












1^ 


|gM|^ 


^tel 


C^ 




^^<. 












■■'^.*>- 



A Berkshire. 



SWINE 319 

Berkshire, — Berkshires resemble the Poland-China 
breed in color and markings, being black with white mark- 
ings. They may be distinguished by their erect ears. They 
have a compact frame, are good feeders, and make a quicker 
growth than most other breeds. The Berkshire has long 
been a favorite breed, especially throughout the Middle 
West. 

3. The Care of Hogs 

Pigs are not so cleanly in their habits as some other 
farm animals. This seems to make many farmers think that 
it does not matter how they are kept. Nothing could be a 
greater mistake. Hogs thrive only tmder hygienic condi- 
tions of feeding and housing. Millions of dollars are thrown 
away every year by failure to give hogs the care they re- 
quire. 

Need of good housing. — Hogs are the most poorly 
housed of any farm animal. Any kind of place is thought 
good enough for them on many farms. Yet hogs are far 
more sensitive to* cold than horses or cattle, which have 
thick coats to protect them, while the hog has almost none. 
Hogs lie down more than most animals, and need a better 
bed. They live close to the ground, and easily breathe in 
dust and impurities. They need sunshine more than do 
horses and cattle, yet little is provided for them. 

Hogs take cold very easily. Little pigs, especially, need 
to be kept warm, dry and away from drafts, if they are not 
to have their growth checked, or even lose their lives by 
catching cold. Neglect of these simple rules indicates shift- 
less farming, and causes great loss. 

Hog-houses. — Every farm that makes a business of 
raising pigs will find a well-built hog-house a paying invest- 
ment. The most economical and convenient hog-house has 
a row of pens along each side of a central alley which, in 



320 AGRICULTURE 

larger buildings, should be wide enough to drive through. 
This allows the hauling in of straw for bedding, and corn 
or slops for feeding, thereby saving much labor. It also 
provides for the easy removing of manure. 

The separate pens should be from five to eight feet wide; 
and from eight to twelve feet long, depending on the use to 
be made of them. Pens for brood sows need not be larger 




An excellent type of hog-house with outdoor pens. 

than five or six by eight feet. If feeding is to be done in the 
pens they should be larger, or, better still, the partitions 
should be removable. The floor may be of cement, though 
for farrowing sows a temporary board floor should be laid 
over the cement, because of the coldness of a cement floor. 
Woven wire stretched over the top of the ground to pre- 
vent rooting is sometimes used as a floor. Such a floor is 
likely to be either dusty or wet, however. Board floors are 
expensive and drafty if above the ground. They also har- 



SWINE 



321 



bor rats, which not infrequently kill young pigs. A dou- 
ble trough may supply each pair of pens. Young pigs 
should have their own troughs outside the main pens. 




Lighting and ventilating hog-houses. — It is not un- 
common to find hog-houses that cost several thousand dol- 
lars built almost without windows or other means of admit- 
ting light, air and sunshine. Other houses are built with 
windows in unfavorable positions, so that the sunlight can 



322 AGRICULTURE 

not fall on the floor of the pens where it is needed by the 
pigs. 

The hog-house should run east and west, so that it may 
have one full side exposed to the sun. This arrangement 
will necessitate having one row of pens along the north side. 
In order to get sunlight into the north pens, the "broken 
roof" style of building is used. Care must be taken to place 
both upper and lower windows at such a height that the 
sunlight will reach the floor during the winter and early 
spring months, or during the farrowing season. 

To do this, the angle of the sun, say in February and 
March, and the width of the building must be carefully com- 
puted. At the latitude of southern Iowa, or central Illinois, 
Indiana, Ohio and Nebraska, the tops of the upper win- 
dows of a hog-house twenty feet wide should be ten and 
one-half feet from the ground. If the north pens are eight 
feet long, and the alley is four feet wide, the sunshine will 
just reach the back line of the pens at ten o'clock and at two 
o'clock on the first of March. Care to such details will save 
the lives of many young pigs farrowed in the early spring. 

Individual hog cots. — Many hog raisers are now pro- 
viding two types of hog-houses, the large permanent house 
for farrowing purposes, and the small individual cot for 
the sows and their litters as soon as the latter are old enough 
to be put out-of-doors. The individual cots may be scattered 
about the lot or pasture, and moved as often as necessary 
to keep the quarters clean. For winter service the cots 
can be collected side by side in a sheltered place, banked 
and used for sleeping quarters. 

The feeding floor. — The use of a sanitary feeding 
floor should be much more common than it is. It is a 
great waste of grain to scatter it in the mud or dust of a 
dirt yard. This mode of feeding is also injurious to the 
health of the pigs, for it compels them to breathe in a great 



SWINE 323 

amount of dust and to eat impurities in order to get the 
grain. The effect is seen in such diseases as "thumps" and 
"wheezes," and in the greater Hability to colds, tuberculosis 
and other troubles. 

The best feeding floor is made of concrete, slightly raised 
above the level of the ground, if made outside the hog-house, 




Individual hog cot, on runners, so that it can be drawn from 
place to place. 

and sloping slightly so that it can easily be washed off. 
Such a floor is not expensive, and will pay for itself many 
times over in the feeding of hogs. 

4. Feeding Hogs 

Hogs are probably the best money makers on the farm, 
if properly handled. The same amount of feed will produce 
a greater value of pork than any other meat. The returns 
also come in sooner than with most other farm animals. 



324 AGRICULTURE 

Money invested in hogs can be turned rapidly, as pigs are 
marketable when eight months old. The yearly sales from 
a herd of hogs should be from two to four times the orig- 
inal investment. Much of the profit depends on intelli- 
gent feeding. 

The feeding of pigs requires the consideration of three 
stages in their development, (1) from farrowing to wean- 
ing, (2) from weaning to fattening, and (3) fattening for 
market. 

Feeding young pigs. — Little pigs do not need any 
food other than their mother's milk for the first two or 
three weeks of their life. When they have reached this age, 
they will begin to nibble on shelled corn. A little of this 
should be fed them in a place outside the pen. By the time 
they are from three to four weeks old, they may be fed 
a small amount of skim-milk, in which has been mixed a 
little ground feed, such as shorts. They should have a 
trough of their own where it can not be reached by the 
mother. 

The amount of mixed feeds and shelled com given small 
pigs may be increased till they are ten weeks old, when they 
should be weaned. When they are deprived of their moth- 
er's milk, which up to weaning time supplies the basis of 
their nourishment, it is very important that they be fed a 
ration capable of producing the most rapid growth and 
best health. 

Feeding pigs after weaning. — At the time of weaning, 
the feed should not be greatly changed, except to increase 
the amount, until the pigs have become accustomed to the 
loss of the mother's milk. If pasture is available, the quan- 
tity of corn may be increased. If the pigs must be kept 
in a dry lot, a larger proportion of soft feeds should be 
used. 

It is to be remembered that the purpose in feeding pigs 



SWINE 



325 



from the age of two months up to the age of six or seven 
months is not to fatten them, but to cause them to grow 
large frames and develop good constitutions. If they are 
fattened too early, it stops their growth, and reduces their 
vitality, thereby making it unprofitable to continue feeding 
them up to full maturity. 







A good type of feeding pen for small pigs. 

Pasturage for growing pigs. — Growing hogs, there- 
fore, require muscle and bone making food, instead of a 
ration that will fatten them. They need exercise to pro- 
mote their growth, and give them strong vigorous frames 
for the taking on of fat. For these reasons, pasturage 



326 



AGRICULTURE 



should supply the basis of the young hog's ration. Clover, 
alfalfa, peas, rape, vetch and other succulent plants are the 
cheapest and best feeds for the period between weaning and 
fattening time. 

To this green feed will need to be added a certain pro- 
portion of corn, or other grain, in order to make a balanced 



SA/\1E LITTER 



CORN 
ALONE 




CORN 

.\" 

ALFALFA 

HAY 



ration. But the poorest and most expensive way to grow 
pigs is to shut them in a dry lot and feed them a ration of 
corn alone, as is so often done. The farm lacking in well 
arranged hog pastures is not ready for the business of mak- 
ing money out of pork. 

Balanced rations for young hogs. — No matter what 
other ration may be fed pigs, milk is always desirable. For 
milk is highly palatable to hogs, and it contains more of 



SWINE 327 

the necessary food elements than any other food. The fol- 
lowing are suggested as rations suitable for growing hogs 
that have, in addition, access to good pasturage : 

1. Corn, 60%; shorts, 30%; tankage, 10%; or 

2. Corn, one-third; wheat, one-third; oats, one-third, 

ground; or 

3. Corn, one-half; shorts, one-half; or 

4. Corn, 60% ; shorts, 20% ; linseed-oil meal, 20% ; or 

5. Corn, one-third; milk, two-thirds. 

It has been shown by careful tests that if pigs must be 
fed in dry lots, ratioi. "^ne, consisting of corn sixty per cent., 
shorts thirty per cent, and tankage ten per cent., will produce 
double the gain that can be secured from corn alone. 

Fattening hogs. — Pigs should be ready for fatten- 
ing by the time they are from six to six and one-half months 
old. When fattening begins, the ration should have a much 
larger proportion of corn. In fact, hogs may be profitably 
fattened on corn alone, through the addition of milk to the 
ration pays. 

While being fed for fattening, the hog does not require 
the amount of exercise needed during the growing period. 
It is not best, however, to shut feeders up in a close pen, 
for a certain amount of exercise is necessary to keep the 
hog in a healthy condition and good appetite. 

Snapped corn is preferable to husked ears on account of 
the greater amount of work demanded of the hog, and the 
slower eating required. Where the fields can be properly 
fenced off, the best of all ways to feed corn to hogs is to 
allow them to do their own harvesting. This method of 
feeding, called "hogging down" corn, gives the hogs about 
the right amount of exercise, allows them to eat whenever 
they desire, and saves the farmer the labor of husking, 
hauling and feeding. The same amount of corn will also 
produce more pork. 



328 



AGRICULTURE 



5. Diseases Affecting Hogs 

Young pigs are not particularly liable to any one dis- 
ease, but easily fall prey to troubles arising from improper 
care. Cold, wet, dirty pens cause the death of many new- 
farrowed pigs. Dusty floors, filthy mud-holes and un- 
cleaned troughs are always harmful. Exposure to extreme 
cold or to burning heat is sure to tell in loss of health or 
weight. It is safe to say that half the troubles attacking 




A rnzor-baok and a pure-bred. The large one was owned and 
raised by the club boy, receiving good care and a balanced ration. 
The razor-back, owned by the father, had no management, a nar- 
row ration, produced pork slowly and unprofitably. 

the younger pigs, at least, could be saved by providing them 
with more sanitary surroundings. 

Thumps. — This is a disease that manifests itself in a 
spasmodic manner of breathing, which suggests the name. 
It is usually a digestive trouble caused by over-feeding 
and lack of exercise. Certain worms may also cause 
thumps. The best preventative for thumps, especially with 



SWINE 329 

young hogs, is plenty of pasture with green feed. The 
treatment for thumps is to reduce the amount of feed, give 
a laxative, and make sure that the pigs get exercise. 

Scours. — Scours, or too great laxness in the digestive 
tract, are caused in young pigs by overfeeding, a feverish 
condition of the mother sow, soured feeds, dirty troughs, 
or some other insanitary condition connected with their 
feeding. The first step in applying a remedy is to find 
and remove the cause. If the trouble continues, each pig 
may be given a few drops of laudanum. 

Worms. — Worms are a source of great trouble in 
raising pigs. Through rooting in the dirt, and being fed 
on dirt floors, young pigs pick up certain kinds of worms 
which continue to live in their digestive organs. Pigs 
never thrive when afflicted with worms. The coat shows 
rough, growth is hindered, the general health affected, and 
a large proportion of the feed wasted. A simple remedy 
is to give one teaspoonful of turpentine to sixty or eighty 
pounds of hog, and repeat the dose in three days. Another 
remedy is five grains of santonin combined with three grains 
of calomel for each sixty or eighty pounds of hog. This 
should be followed by an effective physic. Whatever the 
remedy employed, the pigs should be starved for twelve 
hours before being dosed. 

Lice. — Many hogs are lousy. The lice can easily be 
detected by looking between the legs or behind the ears. 
Hogs suffering with lice will make a slower growth and 
fatten less easily than clean hogs. So important is this 
matter that many hog raisers provide as a part of their 
equipment a dipping tank, in which some form of crude 
oil or coal tar is used as a bath. Where the dipping tank 
is not available, or in the case of young pigs, the remedy 
should be sprayed or rubbed on. 

Tuberculosis. — Hogs, like various other animals, are 



J30 



AGRICULTURE 



subject to tuberculosis. Many hogs have this disease in 
some form. Its effects are seen in a stoppage of growth, 
a general run-down appearance, loss of appetite, and in 
some cases, death. Because hogs are kept so short a time, 
and tuberculosis is so slow a disease, there is comparatively 








Parts of a hog 




A. Snout 




K. Back 


S. Hock 


B. Eye 




L. Loin 


T. Hind leg 


C. Face 




M. Side 


U. Fore flank 


D. Ear 




N. Tail 


V. Foot 


E. Jowl 




0. Rump 


W. Pasterns 


F. Neck 




P. Breast 


X. Dew claw 


G. Fore 1 


eg 


Q. Hind flank 


Y. Stifle 


H. Shoulder 


R. Ham 


Z. Belly 


I. Chest 


line 







little loss owing to deaths from tuberculosis. But many 
animals when slaughtered are found to be unfit for food be- 
cause of the disease. 

Tuberculosis is caught either from diseased pigs, or from 
drinking the milk of tubercular cows. It is probable that 
most of the tuberculosis in swine comes from the latter 



SWINE 331 

cause. Many hog raisers now pasteurize the milk before 
feeding it to the pigs. This is the only sure preventative 
against tubercular milk. 

Hog cholera. — By far the worse disease scourge af- 
fecting hogs is cholera. It not infrequently wipes out en- 
tire herds within a few weeks. The average yearly loss 
from hog cholera in Indiana is estimated at three million 
dollars. In one single "cholera year" Iowa lost at least 
twenty million dollars from this cause. Other states suffer 
in like proportion. It is, therefore, of the highest import- 
ance that the causes of cholera, and the modes of prevention 
be well understood. 

Hog cholera is a germ sickness caught by infection 
from hogs that have the disease. It is not necessary for 
well animals to come in direct contact with cholera hogs 
in order to catch the infection. The germs may be carried 
by dogs ; by pigeons, crows, or other birds that alight in 
the hog lot to pick up grain ; by men who have tramped 
through a lot where cholera hogs have been; by new stock 
brought into the herd; and by streams that have become 
infected. When hog cholera is in the region, therefore, it 
is necessary to observe every precaution to keep infection 
away from the herd. 

Effects of cholera. — The disease is so marked in its 
symptoms that it is not hard to distinguish from most other 
hog sicknesses. In hog cholera, the lymphatic glands, lungs, 
intestines, kidneys and liver are highly inflamed. Red 
blotches appear on the skin. Appetite is lost, the gait be- 
comes staggering, the eyes inflamed. Not infrequently 
bleeding at the nose and vomiting occur. The temperature 
is usually from one hundred and seven to one hundred and 
eight degrees Fahrenheit. The first ones of the herd to be 
stricken commonly die within a few days ; those that take 
the disease later may live for several weeks, or even recover. 



332 



AGRICULTURE 



Treatment. — No absolute cure has been discovered 
for hog- cholera. Nearly all animals that take the disease 
usually die. A method of preventing well herds from 
contracting cholera has, however, been discovered. This 
is to give well hogs anti-cholera serum ; or, in effect, 
vaccinate them, as is done with people for smallpox and 
diphtheria. 

The hog cholera serum is secured by drawing blood from 




I Lad serum. I wish I had. 

a hog which has first been rendered immune to cholera, 
cither by having had the disease or being given a special 
treatment for the purpose of immunizing, and then having 
had cholera germs injected into his veins. Each animal of 
the herd to be treated is given by hypodermic injection a 
certain quantity of this serum in accordance with its size. 
If the treatment is successful, it will immunize the herd 
against cholera for several weeks. When the serum is 
given to well herds, a cholera hog is sometimes brought 
among them, or its carcass even fed them, at the time the 
treatment is given. This method is thought to make the 
immunity more certain. 



SWINE 333 

Success of the serum treatment. — ^The success of the 
serum treatment is still questioned by many. It seems rea- 
sonably certain, however, that where failure has followed its 
use, it was because the serum was improperly prepared 
or not skilfully administered. Various experiment stations 
have found that there is a loss of only about ten per cent, 
of the hogs treated in herds already infected, and of only 
one or two per cent, in well herds where the serum treat- 
ment has been carefully used. The manufacture of serum 
by the state, or official inspection of its manufacture by pri- 
vate plants, will make its use as a cholera preventative still 
more effective. No one is justified in failing to treat his 
herd with the serum when hog cholera threatens. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a census of all the hogs on your home farm, 
classifying them into the following groups : brood sows, 
suckling pigs, young shoats, and fattening hogs. Have 
your father help you estimate the value of each group, and 
compute the value of all. 

2. What different breeds are represented on your farm? 
Are the breeds pure or mixed? 

3. At what time of the year are the pigs farrowed ? At 
what age are they weaned? At what age is fattening 
started? Are your young pigs allowed the range of a pas- 
ture? If so, what is the grass used? What feed is used 
in addition? 

4. Is attention given on your home farm to feeding 
hogs a balanced ration? If so, what are the feeds used? 
What is the ration used for fattening? 

5. If, when pigs are allowed to "hog down" corn it 
takes eight pounds of corn to produce one pound of pork, but 
requires ten pounds of corn to make a pound of pork when 
the corn is fed in a pen, what will be the difference in the 
value of the corn fed twenty hogs while they are making an 
average gain of seventy-five pounds each, corn being worth 
fifty-five cents a bushel ? 



334 AGRICULTURE 

6. Have you any hogs that do not seem to be thriving? 
If so, can you judge what is the matter? Do they cough? 
Do they lack appetite? Do they look rough coated, and 
run down? Is it likely that they have tuberculosis? That 
they have worms ? Have they the thumps ? 

7. Examine several hogs out of your herd for the pres- 
ence of lice. Are your hogs ever treated for lice? Why 
is it that lousy hogs never thrive well ? 

8. Compare all the different types of hog-houses used 
in your neighborhood. How many are clean, light, well 
ventilated, and have the windows so placed that the pens 
receive the sunlight during the spring farrowing season? 

9. Discuss the value of the cholera serum as a pre- 
ventative for hog cholera. How would you proceed to get 
state and government help for the care of hogs if any of 
them showed symptoms of hog cholera? What are some 
of the symptoms ? 

10. Show how to keep a book account of a pen of pigs, 
five in number, for a season of six months. The items 
should include labor costs, feed and equipment. 

11. Show upon the map the relative standing of the 
hog states of the Union. Has there been a falling off or 
an increase in hog production during the last ten years? 
Refer to the last census report of the United States De- 
partment of Agriculture. 

6. Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate upon the blackboard or with paste- 
board or paper, how to make a hog-house ; also a hog pen 
with feeding floor; then make a miniature outfit for the 
club festival or school fair. 

2. How best to move hogs from place to place. Would 
you drive, lead, or coax them ? 

3. Demonstrate by diagram the proper divisions of a 
hog for the butcher's meat block. 

4. Demonstrate the proper method for the vaccination 
of hogs for hog cholera. (Consult Farmers' Bulletin No. 
379.) 



SWINE 335 

5. How to make feeding and watering troughs for hog 
pens, m a simple inexpensive way. 

7. Play Contests 

1. Contest in hog judging. 

2. Naming and giving five characteristics of each of 
the various types or breeds of hogs. 

3. Spelling contest, in which words relating to the hog 
industry are used. 

4. Essay writing contest on one or more of the follow- 
ing subjects: "The Origin of the Hog"; "The Care and 
Feeding of Hogs" ; "Treatment for Diseases of Hogs." 

5. Drawing contest of hogs, hog pens, equipment, etc. 

8. Pig Club Project 

The pig club work can easily be combined with the 
corn or grain club. Each club member takes thoroughbred 
pigs to raise in connection with the corn or grain crop, 
keeping, of course, separate records of each interest and 
charging against the hog all grain or other feed, from the 
club acre. Careful records of observation, receipts and 
expenditures should be kept in connection with the pig 
club work and the project should cover at least twelve 
months of work. 

The basis of award in this particular project should be 
as follows: 

1. The exhibit of the hog and relation to its purpose judged 

by score-card 25 

2. Average gain per day or month 25 

3. Net profit and cost of production 25 

4. Records and story on "How I Raised My Hog" 25 

Total score 100 



CHAPTER XXII 
SHEEP 

7^ HE raising of sheep has never received the attention it 
deserves in most regions. There are at present only a 
little more than fifty million sheep on the farms of the 
United States. Almost sixty per cent, of our sheep are found 
in ten states, seven of which are in the far West, one in the 
South, and only two in the middle and eastern states. Ac- 
cording to their importance in sheep raising, these states 
are: Montana, Wyoming, Ohio, New Mexico, Idaho, Ore- 
gon, California, Michigan, Texas and Utah. Other middle 
western states having important sheep interests are Mis- 
souri, Indiana, Kentucky, Iowa and Illinois. 

1. hnportance of Sheep on the Farm, 

Sheep could be raised with good profit on thousands of 
farms where they are now unknown. They are among the 
most hardy of the domestic animals, and will thrive in al- 
most every part of the country. 

Sheep as foragers. — Sheep have no equal among the 
farm animals as foragers. They will eat a wide range of 
roughage, much of which is not available for other stock. 
Certain weeds not palatable to most animals are eaten by 
sheep, and they therefore aid in keeping pastures, meadows 
and fields clean. Sheep will graze steep hillsides not acces- 
sible to horses or cattle, and will feed from the foliage 
and twigs of brushland pastures. They find a good livinp^ 

336 



SHEEP 



337 



t>n stubble-fields, and will clean up the waste leaves, husks 
and stalks of corn-fields, being able to thrive in fields where 
cattle and horses have gleaned all that they can well find. 
Sheep can therefore obtain a considerable part of their liv- 
ing from material that would otherwise go to waste. 




Steep grazing in Washington. 

Sheep require little labor. — Comparatively little labor 
is required in caring for sheep. In order to maintain the 
fertility of the soil, we need to raise more stock on our 
farms. Half a dozen sheep will produce as much income 
as a dairy cow, and demand much less labor for their care. 



338 AGRICULTURE 

Their heavy coats enable sheep to live in relatively open 
sheds in the winter, providing they are kept dry. The cost 
of shelter is therefore low. 

One of the chief practical difficulties in sheep raising 
is that the fences suitable for horses and cattle will not 
hold sheep. The present tendency, however, is to build 
closer fences, so that fields will be available for both hogs 
and sheep. In some regions serious loss of sheep occurs 
from vicious dogs, wolves and coyotes. Sheep-killing dogs 
should be relentlessly shot. 

Sheep bring quick returns. — Sheep are almost as good 
as poultry for quick returns. For ordinary farm purposes 
breeds are usually selected to produce both wool and mut- 
ton. In this way a double yield can be secured — fleeces from 
all the flock, and either lambs or mutton in addition. 

It is estimated that the fleece from good sheep should 
pay for their feed, thereby leaving the lambs raised or the 
mutton produced as profit. Lambs are ready for market at 
from seven to twelve months of age, thus allowing the 
money invested in them to be turned quickly. 

2. Breeds of Sheep 

Sheep, like cattle, are kept for two purposes. Just as 
cattle include both the beef and the dairy breeds, so sheep 
comprise mutton breeds and merino, or wool, breeds. 

Mutton breeds. — Mutton breeds of sheep correspond 
to beef breeds of cattle — their forms must be such as to 
yield the best results on the butcher's block, and they must 
be able to change their feed profitably into mutton. 

Mutton breeds are divided into two classes in accordance 
with the length of their wool: (1) medium zuool, or down 
type, of which there are eight different breeds; and (2) 
long wool, of which there nre three breeds. 



Medium wool breeds — 



SHEEP 

Long wool breeds- 



339 



Shropshire 

Southdown 

Oxford 

Hampshire 

Dorset-Horn 

Cheviot 

Tunis 



Leicester 
Cotswold 
Lincoln 




Sheep grazing, typical of western states. 

The mutton breeds are more commonly used for the gen- 
eral purposes of the farmer than are the breeds that are 
classified as merino. 

Merino breeds. — The merino breeds of sheep corre- 
spond to the dairy breeds of cattle. The build is more 
angular than that of the mutton breeds, and the general 
form such as to give the largest surface for the attach- 
ment of fleece. On the pure wool breeds the skin often 
hangs in folds on certain parts of the body, thus increasing 



340 AGRICULTURE 

the area for the growth of v;ool. The three chief merino 
breeds are; 

American Merino 
Delaine Merino 
Rambouillet 

Market classes of sheep. — Wholly regardless of breed, 
market demands divide sheep into three groups or classes. 
These are (1) fat, or mutton sheep, or those ready for 
slaughter ; if the animals are less than one year old, they 
are called lambs; (2) feeders, or animals ready to be fat- 
tened; and (3) breeders. 

3. Feeding Sheep 

What has been said about the ability of sheep to forage 
for a great part of their food must not be understood to 
mean that it does not matter what sheep are given to eat. 
For sheep are exactly like all other animals in requiring 
the right proportion of nutritive elements in their food. 
Lacking a proper ration, they will be checked in growth, 
delayed in fattening, or short on the quantity and quality of 
wool. 

Feeding ewes kept for breeding. — Ewes that are to 
produce lambs in the spring may be fed through the winter 
on a cheaper ration than that required for the feeders. The 
ewes need more of the muscle-forming, and less of the fat- 
producing foods. Their rations may therefore consist more 
largely of roughage, and less of grains than for the fat- 
tening lambs. 

For breeding ewes weighing from one hundred and 
twenty-five to one hundred and fifty pounds, the following 
daily rations have been tested by the Minnesota Experiment 
Station and have been found to be economical and satis- 
factory : 



SHEEP 



341 



Ration No. 1. 



3.5 pounds of corn stover. 
2.0 pounds of roots. 
.4 pounds of oats or shelled 



Ration No. 2. 



2. pounds of clover hay. 
1.4 pounds of corn stover. 
.4 pounds of oats and corn 



mixed. 




Montana sheep ready for shipment. 

Feeding for market. — The ration for fattening re- 
quires a larger proportion of fats and carbohydrates than 
the ones just described. It has also been found that lambs 
fatten best with a mixture of succulent food along with the 
usual roughage and grain. 

The Cornell University Experiment Station has tried 
extensive experiments in fattening different lots of lambs 



342 AGRICULTURE 

during a period of one hundred and ten days. Each of the 
following rations served fifty lambs for one day : 

Ration No. 1. Ration No. 2, 



60 pounds of silage. 65 pounds of mixed hay. 

50 pounds of mixed hay. 35 pounds of corn. 

35 pounds of corn. 15 pounds of oats. 

13 pounds of oats. 5 pounds of brewer's grains. 
5 pounds of brewer's grain. 

Ration No. 3. Ration No. 4. 



65 pounds of mixed bay. 60 pounds of silage. 

10 pounds of corn. 50 pounds of mixed hay. 

20 pounds of brewer's grains. 10 pounds of corn. 
20 pounds of gluten. 20 pounds of brewer's grains. 

5 pounds of oats. 20 pounds of gluten. 

5 pounds of oats. 

It should be understood in studying these rations that 
at the beginning of the feeding period a larger proportion 
of roughage and a smaller proportion of grain were fed. By 
the end of the one-hundred-and-ten-day period this propor- 
tion had been reversed. The rations as given are the daily 
average for the whole time. 

The actual amount of nutrients is the same for each of 
these four rations, yet the results differ considerably both 
as to cost and the amount of fat produced, as is shown by 
the following comparisons: 



Ration 

1 
2 
3 
4 

It will be noted that the most rapid gains, and at the 
lowest cost per pound were from the rations that contained 



Average gain per she 


:ep 


Cost per pound 


in 110 days 




of gain 


22.1 pounds 




10.6 cents 


15.7 " 




15.9 " 


18.9 " 




13.2 " 


25.1 




9.6 " 



SHEEP 343 

silage. It is also seen that the lowest gain, and at the 
highest cost per pound, was from ration No. 2, where all 
succulent food was lacking, and most of the grain ration 
consisted of corn and oats. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a study of the sheep raising industry in your 
vicinity, determining (1) how many sheep are kept, (2) 
what breeds are most used, (3) whether mutton or wool is 
depended on for the chief source of profit, and (4) what 
method of feeding and housing is principally followed. 

2. Which would probably add more labor on your 
farm, increasing your dairy herd by five cows, or keeping 
a flock of thirty sheep? How would the profits probably 
compare? What is the basis for your judgment? 

3. Suppose the cost of the nutrients making up the 
fattening rations shown on page 342 was as follows : Hay, 
ten dollars a ton ; silage, two dollars and fifty cents a ton ; 
corn, sixty-five cents a bushel ; oats, forty-five cents a 
bushel ; distiller's grains, thirty dollars a ton ; gluten, 
twenty-five dollars a ton. Figure what it cost to feed fifty 
lambs with each ration for one hundred and ten days. 

4. After judging one or more sheep under the direction 
of the teacher, judge several animals independently, and 
then have your markings criticized and corrected. 

5. Write an argument of three hundred words showing 
why sheep raising should be extended as an industry in 
your neighborhood and county. 

6. Show how to keep a record of labor costs, pasture 
rent, feed and shearing of ten sheep. 

7. Indicate on the map of the United States the sheep 
areas and the approximate number of sheep in each state, 
as shown by the last census report. 

8. Enumerate in your note-book the various products 
supplied by sheep. 

4. Sheep Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate the proper method of shearing sheep. 

2. Show how to make a balanced ration for sheep for 
the month of January in your locality. 



344 AGRICULTURE 

Z. Demonstrate how to judge the sheep. Use drawing, 
photograph or chart. 

4. Demonstrate how to judge a lamb for mutton pur- 
poses. Use an animal in this case if possible. 

5. Show how to judge sheep for wool purposes. Use 
the animal in this case. 

5. Sheep Play Contests 

1. Breed naming contests. 

2. Wool fabric judging contest. A number of small 
pieces of various kinds of wool cloth, mixed with half wool 
and half cotton pieces, and some cotton pieces can be 
placed before the pupils with a view to teaching them 
how to distinguish between all-wool, part-wool, or cotton 
goods. 

3. Essay writing contest on "The Life History of 
Sheep." 

4. Sheep judging contest. 

5. Five-minute extemporaneous speaking contest. In 
this contest have club members obtain all kinds of informa- 
tion with a view to making a speech either for or against the 
production of sheep on the average farm of the community. 
The object of this is to have them use the information ob- 
tained from the text, investigations, etc., and apply this to 
their own farming conditions. 

6. Sheep Club Projects 

There are two practical club projects in connection with 
this line of work : The mutton production club, and the 
wool production club. 

Mutton production club. — In connection with this 
club project the members are to take from one to a dozen 
spring lambs and care for them, keeping a record for a 
definite period of time, with a view to preparing them for 



SHEEP 345 

the mutton market. The basis of award for this project 
may be : 

1. Net profit or cost of production 30 

2. Condition of lamb, judged by score-card 30 

3. Records of cost of labor, feeding, etc 20 

4. Story of "How to Produce Good Mutton" 20 

Total score 100 

Wool production cluo. — This may consist of taking 
care of one or more sheep lor a year's time, and may require 
the ckib member to select the sheep on tlie basis of high 
wool production. Keep records and accounts of labor and 
feed, as well as wool receipts. The net profit on investment 
is to come from the returns from the wool rather than the 
mutton. The basis of award may be : 

1. Net profit or cost of production 30 

2. Condition and quality of wool produced 30 

3. Exhibit of samples of wool 20 

4. Records and story of "How to Produce High-grade 

Wool Economically" 20 

Total score lOG 



CHAPTER XXIII 
POULTRY 

THE raising of poultry is considered of rather incidental 
importance on most farms. A few chickens are kept 
for supplying the table with fresh eggs and an occasional 
fowl. Perhaps a flock of turkeys, ducks or geese are added 
for the sake of variety. Little attention is usually given to 
the possibility of large profits from the sale of eggs and 
poultry. 

Yet, in spite of this somewhat haphazard method of 
treating the poultry industry, its aggregate returns are very 
large. For more than five and one-half million farms have 
a flock of chickens or other fowl. In addition, not a few 
people in villages and towns keep enough fowl for home 
use. 

1. Take a census of all the fowls on your home farm, 
dividing into chickens, ducks, geese, etc. 

2. How many of each class are in their first year ; sec- 
ond year ; third year, etc. ? 

3. Carefully estimate the value of each class of fowls, 
and compute the value of all. 

1. Distribution of Poultry Production 

Nearly five hundred million fowls are kept on the farms 
in our population. Considerably more than one and one- 
half billion dozen eggs are produced annually. This is 
enough to supply every man, woman and child with fifteen 

346 



POULTRY 347 

dozen eggs each year. The value of the eggs is in excess of 
three hundred milHon dollars a year, or sufficient to pay 
about three-fourths of the running expenses of all our 
public schools. The fowls themselves are worth above two 
hundred million dollars. 

The ten leading poultry states. — Ten states supply 
about fifty-four per cent, of all the eggs we produce. These 
states are Missouri, Iowa, Ohio, Illinois, Kansas, Indiana, 
Texas, Pennsylvania, New York and Michigan. 

The percentage of the entire egg crop produced by each 
of these ten states is as follows : 

Missouri 7.0% 

Iowa 6.9% 

Ohio 6.3% 

Illinois 6.3% 

Kansas 5.1% 

Indiana 5.1% 

Texas 4.9% 

Pennsylvania 4.7% 

New York 4.6% 

Michigan 3.8% 

2. Poultry Raisittg as a Farm Industry 

There are several good reasons why the raising of poul- 
try should occupy a more important place than it now does 
on most of our farms. 

Increasing demands for eggs and poultry. — Eggs 
form one of the most necessary and palatable articles of 
food. With improved methods of shipping and cold storage 
they have increasingly become a staple on almost every 
table, city as well as country. The prices are high, a dozen 
of eggs bringing the farmer about as much as a pound of 
butter. The demand for fowl as a supplement to other 
kinds of meat has also greatly increased, and there is now 



348 



'AGRICULTURE 



a ready market throughout the year for all kinds of poultry 
suitable for the table. 

Low cost of feeding poultry. — A fair-sized flock of 
poultry can be kept on the farm with but little expense for 
feed. This is because fowl will gather up the greater part 
of their living from material that would otherwise be wasted. 
Scattered grain from the feed lots ; undigested grain from 
farm animals ; weed and grass seeds ; grass and various 




A year's product of an average hen and a good hen. 
average hen laid 75 eggs, tlie good Len 223 eggs. 



The 



green plants about the barn lots, worms, bugs, grasshoppers 
and other insect pests form a large part of the diet of farm 
poultry during most of the year. 

The labor of caring for poultry is light. — The labor 
connected with poultry raising is much lighter than with 
other farm animals. Much of the work is suited to the 
strength and interest of children, and gives the training in 
responsibility which every child needs. With a little over- 



POULTRY 349 

sight, children of from ten to eighteen years can successfully 
take almost entire charge of poultry raising and make it 
highly profitable. This has been fully demonstrated in many 
boys' and girls' poultry clubs in nearly every state. 

Quick profits are realized. — The profits from a well 
managed flock of chickens are not only liberal and certain, 
but quick. Chickens are ready for market within a few 
months from the time they are hatched, and hens are at 
their best as layers during the first and second years of their 
life. And the eggs afford a continuous source of income 
to meet the expense of any feed or other supplies that are 
bought, or to add to the bank account. 

Almost all farm boys and girls could become expert 
chicken raisers and, by making arrangements with their 
parents to receive a share of the income from the flock, 
earn their own money for clothes, books, schooling, travel 
or whatever else they may desire. 

3. Breeds of Chickens 

According to experts there are one hundred and four 
standard varieties of chickens raised in the United States. 
There are many other varieties not sufficiently developed to 
be called standard. For practical purposes the standard 
varieties may all be grouped in four classes : ( 1 ) General 
purpose breeds ; (2) meat or table breeds ; (3) egg breeds; 
(4) ornamental breeds. 

General purpose breeds. — ^The general purpose 
breeds are the result of an attempt to combine egg-laying 
with good table qualities. The favorites of these breeds are : 

Plymouth Rocks, Barred, White and Buff. 

Wyandottes, Silver, Golden, White, Buff, Black, etc. 

Javas, Black and Mottled. 

Dominiques, Rose-comb. 

Rhode Island Reds, Single-comb and Rose-comb. 




^..i^f^m^' 



Barred riviiioutli Kocks. 




Siugle-coiub EUode Islaud Beds. 



POULTRY 351 

Buckeyes, Pea-comh. 

Orpingtons, Bufif, Black and White. 

Houdans, Mottled. 

Meat breeds. — The meat, or table, breeds are chiefly 
raised for the large markets. They must be of good shape 
and size, quick growers and ready fatteners. The principal 
breeds of this class are : 

Brahmas, Light and Dark. 

Cochins, Buff, Partridge, White and Black. 

Langshans, Black and White. 

Dorkings, White, Silver-gray and Colored. 

Indians, White Game. 

Egg breeds. — The prime consideration in the egg 
breeds is that they shall be good layers, begin laying young, 
and continue for a considerable period of time. The chief 
breeds are : 

Leghorns, Brown, Buff, White, Black, etc. 

Minorcas, Black and White. 

Spanish, White-faced Black. 

Andalusians, Blue. 

Anconas, Mottled. 

Hamburgs, Gold and Silver Spangled, White and Black. 

Redcaps, Rose-corpb. 

Ornamental breeds. — The ornamental breeds are not 
important for practical farm purposes. Some of the favor- 
ites of these breeds are : 

Polish, White-crested Black, Golden, Silver, White, Golden. 

Crevecoeurs, Black. 

La Fleche, Black. 

Bantams. 

Games. 

It is best not to mix breeds of chickens. First one should 
decide what class is desired, whether egg, meat, or general 



m 







Single-comb Buff Orpingtons. 



v:,;u • 


1 


^ M 


i 

1 


^^^^^^M\ 


^M^^^ 


1^^ 


^^S 


. ^J( ■.-■■ 


'- • 'p' 



Black Luugsliaus. 



POULTRY 



353 



purpose. Then a pure breed of this class should be selected, 
and the strain kept free from mixture with other breeds. 

1. Are the chickens on your farm pure bred, grade, or 
scrub ? What breed or breeds do you use ? Is this an egg, 
meat or general purpose breed? 

2. What steps could be taken to improve the breed? 







Light Brabmas. 



Would this not pay? Do egg or table breeds return most 
profit under farm conditions? 



4. Prodxiclnz Chickens 



A successful hatch depends (1) on securing fertile un- 
injured eggs, and (2) on proper incubation. 

Eggs for hatching. — Heredity has its efifect in fowl as 
well as other animals. The eggs for hatching should there- 
fore come from the choicest and most vigorous members 



354 AGRICULTURE 

of the flock. The best plan is to separate from the main 

flock a sufficient number of desirable hens to produce the 
eggs required for setting. These can be kept by them- 
selves until the hatching season is over. 

In order that eggs may hatch at all they must be fertile. 
They are made fertile by the presence of a male bird in 
the flock during the laying season. One male should be 
supplied for every ten or twelve hens. Since one-half of the 
heredity of the entire flock is dependent <on the male bird, 
he should be pure bred, the best of his kind, young and 
vigorous. 

Care of eggs before setting. — Eggs should be fresh 
when they are set, never more than -two weeks old, and 
better if not more than a few days from the nest. They 
should be kept rather cool, a suitable temperature being 
between fifty and sixty degrees Fahrenheit. Eggs that have 
been badly chilled will not hatch. It is necessary, 'therefore, 
that eggs intended for hatching shall be gathered at fre- 
quent intervals during cold weather. Many poultrj^ men 
think it is best to turn the eggs over every day or so during 
the time they are stored before setting. They should never 
be jarred or shaken. 

Hatching with the hen. — Eggs may be successfully 
hatched either with a hen or an incubator. If the hatch is 
not to consist of more than from one hundred to two hun- 
dred chicks, and if the hens come of a breed of good setters, 
it is doubtful whether it pays to use an incubator. 

Only quiet, motherly hens of good disposition should be 
used for setting. The nest should be made of a box from 
fourteen to sixteen inches square, and six inches deep. Four 
inches of earth should be placed in the box, hollowed slight- 
ly, and covered with chaff or straw. The broody hen should 
be removed to the nest at night and given a few china eggs 



rOULTRY 



355 



for a Qay or two to make sure that she Is in earnest about 
sitting. From thirteen to fifteen eggs may then be given 
her for the hatch. It is well to dust both hen and nest with 
insect powder to destroy vermin. The sitting hen should 
be well fed on such grains as corn, wheat, or oats, have 




A home-made egg tester. 



plenty of fresh water, and be let off the nest a short timp 
^ach day for «xercise and a dust bath. 



356 AGRICULTURE 

Hatching with the incubator. — Although there are 
many different makes of incubators, they all supply the heat 
necessary for hatching by one of two methods, either hot 
air, or hot water. All of the standard makes will be found 
satisfactory, though the hot-air type seems less likely to get 
out of order. 

Success with the incubator depends much more on the 
operator than the machine. For unless the temperature and 
ventilation are kept right, the eggs properly turned, and 
other necessary conditions met, the hatch is sure to fail. 
The directions supplied with the machine must be faith- 
fully followed, else one need not hope for success. 

Testing for infertile eggs. — About the sixth day after 
setting the eggs should be tested and the infertile ones re- 
moved. The testing may be done by placing a small lamp 
or a lantern in a box through one side of which just oppo- 
site the light a hole has been cut somewhat smaller than 
an egg. The testing should be done in the dark, preferably 
at night. The egg is held against the opening in front of 
the light. As the light shines through, the infertile eggs 
will appear clear, while the fertile egg will show a network 
of threads leading out from a center, and floating about 
as the egg is turned. If a number of hens were set at the 
same time, and many infertile eggs are found, one hen 
may be released, or given a new supply, and the fertile 
eggs distributed among the others. 

Care of newly hatched chicks. — The chicks first 
hatched from a setting should be removed from the nest 
in about twenty-four hours. If they are not, they will begin 
to leave the nest themselves, and the hen is likely to desert 
the nest before all the eggs are hatched. The chicks must 
be kept warm and comfortable until the mother is ready for 
them. 



POULTRY 



357 



When the hatching is done in an incubator, the chicks 
are left for twenty-four hours after hatching and then re- 
moved to the brooder, which must be at a temperature of 
from ninety to ninety-five degrees Fahrenheit. By the time 
the chicks are a month old the brooder may be brought 
gradually down to seventy degrees. 

1. Is any care taken in raising chickens on your farm, 
toward selecting eggs from the best hens for setting? Is 
care taken to use only the best male birds? 

2. Draw a plan for a suitable nest for a sitting hen, 
showing covered runway. 




A well-arranged interior, showing nests and feeding equipment. 

3. Do you make the test for infertile eggs after the 
hens have been set about a week ? How do you tell whether 
the egg has started to hatch ? 

5. Feeding Chickens 
Feeding young chickens. — For the first forty-eight 



358 AGRICULTURE 

hours after hatching the young chick needs no feed of any 
kind. Nature had provided for this period by having the yolk 
of the egg absorbed into the abdomen of the chick just before 
it is hatched. This food must be used up before the chick 
is ready for more. 

The first food given the chicks may be stale bread soaked 
in milk and squeezed dry ; hard boiled eggs chopped fine, 
shell and all ; or cracked corn, wheat or oats. A good grain 
ration for chicks is made of equal parts of cracked com, 
cracked wheat and cut oats fed five times a day. An excel- 
lent supplementary ration to hasten growth is the follow- 
ing : Bran, ten pounds ; shorts, ten pounds ; cornmeal, five 
pounds ; meat scraps, five pounds ; charcoal, two and one- 
half pounds. This mixture may either be fed wet or dry. 
Plenty of sour milk will add greatly to the eifectiveness of 
the ration. Green foods should also be suppliea iroiu the 
first. 

Feeding laying hens. — Hens, like other animals, do 
best on a ration balanced to meet their needs. There is 
no one best ration, since the necessary food elements can be 
obtained from many different sources. It is certain, how- 
ever, that fowls require grain, meat, or milk, mill feeds 
such as shorts, or bran, green foods, sharp grit, shell and 
water. 

The following is recommended as a well balanced lay- 
ing ration, though wheat may be left out and more corn 
and oats added, or milk supplied instead of the meat scraps. 
(Purdue Extension Btdletin, 10.) 

GuAiN Dry Mash 



10 pounds of corn. 5 pounds of bran. 

10 pounds of wheat. 5 pounds of shorts. 

5 pounds of oats. 3% pounds of meat scraps. 

The grain is fed in a litter of straw night and morning, 



POULTRY 359 

and the mash left before the fowls the greater part of the 
day. Green food, grit and shell are, of course, added to 
this ration. 

Feeding chickens for fattening. — Chickens should be 
specially fattened for market. Not only is weight added, 
but the quality of the meat greatly improved by fattening, 
and a higher price obtained. When unfattened chickens 
are selling at ten cents, the same fowls when fattened will 
bring fifteen cents in the city markets. 

Both the pen and the crate method of fattening are used. 
Pen fattening requires less time and attention than crate 
fattening. The fattening pen should be kept darkened ex- 
cept at feeding time, in order that the chickens may remain 
quiet. A suitable ration is fed at regular intervals, and in 
as large quantities as the fowls will eat in from twenty to 
thirty minutes. 

Crate feeding. — More rapid fattening is possible by 
placing from six to nine chickens in a crate. The fowls are 
given a regular ration, and kept from all exercise. About 
two weeks is the average time required for fattening. An 
excellent fattening ration may be compounded as follows : 

10 pounds of cornmeal. 

S pounds of shorts. 

5 pounds of ground oats. 
40 pounds of buttermilk. 

Cramming. — Poultrymen who make a business of fat- 
tening for city markets often use the cramming system of 
feeding. This method is based on the fact that chickens 
will not eat so much as they can assimilate and use in mak- 
ing fat. The fowl is taken from the pen or crate and held 
while soft food is pressed down the throat into the crop, or 
passed into the crop by means of a tube attached to a 
cramming machine. This forcible feeding will considerably 
hasten the fattening process. 



360 AGRICULTURE 

6. Producing and Marketing Eggs 

Properly handled eggs are the most profitable part ot 
the poultry business on the farm. It is therefore well to 
study the conditions necessary to the largest production of 
eggs. The number of eggs produced by a flock depends 
(1) on the breed, whether of the laying, or meat, type; (2) 
on the feed, whether it consists of a balanced ration con- 
taining the elements required by the egg; and (3) the 
housing and care. 

Profitable layers. — There is a great difference in the 
laying qualities not only of different breeds, but also of 
individual hens. An average grade or scrub hen will lay 
about seventy-five eggs in a year ; a high-class hen of a lay- 
ing breed, more than two hundred. These two hens eat the 
same amount of food, take the same amount of room, and 
require the same amount of care. The one hardly pays for 
her keep, the other yields a handsome profit. It will pay 
every farmer to weed out the poor layers from his flock, 
and fill their places with productive hens. 

Age and egg production. — Young hens are the best 
layers. Only in the case of exceptional layers should hens 
"be kept after they are two years old. Hens that have 
passed their second year will continue laying and produce 
a fair number of eggs, but younger hens will produce more 
eggs, and should therefore take the place of the older ones. 

Pullets should begin laying in the fall of their first year. 
In order that they may do this, it is necessary to have them 
hatched out early in the preceding spring, preferably not 
later than March or April. They should then lay through- 
out the winter, and be at their best the following summer. 

The quality of eggs. — Eggs are rated commercially 
according to size as extras when they weight from twenty-six 
to twenty-eight ounces to the dozen; as firsts when they 
weigh from twenty-four to twenty-six ounces to the dozen; 



POULTRY 361 

and as seconds when they weigh less than twenty-four 
ounces. In some places eggs are now sold by weight. For 
these reasons the size is of great importance. 

To command the highest price, eggs should also be uni- 
form in shape and color, the shell smooth and free from 
spots, and clean without having been washed. Tested with 
the candler the air cell should be no larger than a dime, 
thus indicating freshness ; the contents must appear opaque, 
the yolks barely visible, and free from any discoloring ; the 
white must show thick and compact, the yolk not floating 
aboui. 

1. Make a candler test as described in the text, and 
learn to tell fresh from stale eggs ; fertile from infertile. 

2. Score the eggs collected for several days from your 
farm hens. How many extras; firsts; seconds F How many 
were dirty? What was the average score? 

Effect of infertility on quality. — No eggs except those 
intended for hatching should be fertile. This is because 
infertile eggs keep much longer and in better flavor than 
fertile eggs. If a fertile egg is allowed to stand in a warm 
temperature for two or three days it begins to develop 
blood-rings ; that is, it begins to hatch. This process is sure 
to go on during the marketing and shipping, thus greatly 
reducing the value of the eggs. The infertile egg is free 
from all this difficulty, and will keep fresh much longer. 

It is estimated that the loss from allowing eggs to be- 
come fertilized is more than fifteen million dollars annually 
in the United States. All male birds should therefore be 
kept away from laying hens when the eggs are to be used or 
sold. This will have no effect on the number of eggs pro- 
duced. 

Rules for egg production. — ^The following rules for 
egg production are given by the United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture : 







PRODUCE INFER 111,1:, iCc'.s ..# j^ 
PREVENT LO.S.S FROM ll\D I ,c:g$ 




IT IS ALSO ESTIMATE!) THAT 
THIS LOSS IS DUE '10 BLf" 

Evsv dollar o! thi. I<ll^ ([om Wl.>I riiv 

un ll,e (a.m. 

Blov-d rin^i Ar<- a c^rroir i\i^r of iIihtV 
Heat dcviriopj ihc %cin\ until it Wc.unc 

FiguiM 4, '6. and «.) 

BIoo<l ring$ ofltn develop in thr neflt .ii'd 

tJie house dunng iln? \toK fuinmer weathi'i. i:- 
Blood tint! can net be pMxltici^ in lli.' 
BlowJ fioel m tioubl^Kime only in hwl • 
l..f«lilc cgp. a>f .TO^ Uid bvl>rn. x],y 

with a mile bird. (S« Rule 5. below.) 

A study of .these pl.;tute« sjiould qulill' 

infertile ei;g U the tjunlilv egy; ibeujoi.-, ir 

male biiAfcm the ll.Kj;.an<l rod,.- n, 

iriiuiv,! ol the male biul, I,,., ■ 

p,o.|nr„..n. ■ 




• 





Fertile ;iud infertile eggs. 



POULTRY 363 

1. Keep the nests clean; provide one nest for each four 

hens. 

2. Gather the eggs twice daily. 

3. Keep the eggs in a cool dry room or cellar. 

4. Alarket the eggs at least twice a week. 

5. Market, kill or confine all male birds as soon as the 

hatching season is over. 

7. Housing the Poultry 

There are almost as many different styles of poultry 
houses as dwelling houses. The exact form of the poultry 
house is nat important, though some types are more pleas- 
ing in appearance and less expensive than others. Every 
state agricultural college has plans for poultry houses 
adapted to the region and will be glad to supply these to 
citizens of the state. No matter what the style, however, 
certain fundamental requirements should be met by all 
poultry houses. 

Drainage. — Poultry are especially sensitive to unhy- 
gienic surroundings. Impurities arising from ground sat- 
urated with unclean seepage, and dampness coming from 
undrained soil are sure to injure the fowls. The poultry 
house should be built on well drained ground. Drain tile 
should be used to carry the water away if necessary. 

Room. — In many instances a flock of chickens are 
crowded into a space far too small for them, and the 
owner then wonders why they do not thrive well or lay 
eggs. The amount of floor space should be from four to five 
square feet for each bird. If there is free access to a shel- 
tered yard, somewhat less than this may serve, but better 
sell part of the flock than overcrowd them in small pens. 

Ventilation. — Chickens require far more air accord- 
ing to their weight than larger animals. Confinement in 
close, ill-smelling rooms is certain to lower their vitality, 
bring on diseases, and interfere with laying. In climates 




Brood coops set on clean fresh ground. This flock is in little 
danger of disease. 




A practical hen house for the farm. 



POULTRY 365 

where the poultry house can not have an open front, two 
or more sashes should be covered with muslin instead of 
being glazed, and hung on hinges so that the window may 
be thrown open in good weather. In bad weather the sash 
may be closed and yet admit sufficient air. Drafts should 
never strike chickens either while they are on the roost or 
the floor. 

Sunlight. — Sunlight is the best of disinfectants. The 
poultry house should front the south, and have a reason- 
able number of glazed windows besides the muslin sashes. 
Too much glass makes the house excessively hot in the 
summer and very cold in the winter; too little glass leaves 
the quarters dark and gloomy, hinders the chickens in feed- 
ing, and encourages disease. 

Freedom from dampness. — When frost gathers heav- 
ily inside the poultry house in cold weather it shows too 
great a degree of dampness. This may come from the 
ground floor, or lack of ventilation and sunlight. If a soil 
floor is used, there should first be filled in several inches 
of broken rock. On top of this may be placed a coating of 
cinders, and over the cinders a layer of soil. The soil floor 
at its best is hard to keep clean, dry and free from odors. 
Cement makes an excellent floor, as it can easily be washed. 
Over the cement should be spread an inch or two of straw 
or hay. 

Comfortable roosts. — Fowls spend much time on the 
roosts. It is therefore important that the roosts be com- 
fortable. Roosts may be made from two-by-two-inch stuff, 
rounded on the upper edges ; they should be placed about 
two and one-half feet from the floor. Eight inches below 
the roosts should be .a removable board or floor to catch 
the droppings. 

Nests. — One nest should be supplied for every four 
hens. The nests may be built in a series along the side, 



366 



AGRICULTURE 



just under the eaves if these are not too high. Hens lay 
best in a secluded place. The nests should therefore be 
covered, and sufficiently enclosed to make them partially 
dark. Openings through the outer wall large enough to 
admit the hand into the nests will allow the gathering of 
the eggs without entering the building. Care must be 
taken, however, to provide a way to close these holes so 
that drafts may not strike the nests. 




Colony houses and runs for ducks. 



Colony houses. — Colony houses are small buildings 
intended for from fifteen to twenty-five fowls, and are 
movable. They may be constructed on the same plan as the 
larger building, and are placed on sills or runners so that 
that may be dragged from place to place with a team. 
Poultrymen who use colony houses move them frequently, 
thus "^.ecuring better hygienic conditions. The colony house 
IS especially desirable for hens with broods of chickens. 
Many large poultry raisers use both the permanent building 
and the colony house for their flocks. 



l^OULTRY 367 

8. Poultry Diseases 

Tlie poultrymati's aim should be to prevent diseases 
rather than cure them in his flock. For a fowl sick with 
any serious disease is hard to treat, and should usually be 
killed at once to save time in caring for it and the danger 
of infecting others. 

Sanitation in the poultry yard. — Chickens are subject 
to a number of diseases that depend chiefly on lack of 
cleanliness around the premises. Lice and various para- 
sitic mites attack little chicks or older fowls alike. Fre- 
quent whitewashing of the poultry house, washing the roosts 
with kerosene, and spraying with kerosene emulsion such 
as is used for fruit trees, are some of the preventatives for 
these pests. 

A simple and effective lice powder is made of one pint of 
tobacco dust mixed with two quarts of fine road dust. Sul- 
phur may be used in place of the tobacco dust, and finely 
sifted hard coal ashes in place of the road dust. The soil of a 
poultry yard should occasionally be sprayed with kerosene 
emulsion, or coated with whitewash after all refuse has 
been removca. If the ground is plowed or spaded late in 
the fall and allowed to freeze during the winter many para- 
sites and disease germs will be destroyed. 

White diarrhea. — This is a disease affecting young 
chicks within the first four days of their life. They are 
n.jst subject to attack the first twenty-four hours, and im- 
mune after ninety-six hours. The disease is caused by a 
bacterium found in the egg laid by a hen that carries the 
germs in her body. It may also be caught by contagion 
from chicks that have the disease, or from contact with in- 
cubators where the germs have lodged. There is no suc- 
cessful remedy. A good measure of prevention is to keep 
incubators, brooders and all feeding utensils disinfected. 



368 AGRICULTURE 

Gapes. — Gapes is another disease attacking young 
chicks. It is caused by a small worm picked up from the 
soil. The worms attach themselves to the inner walls of 
the windpipe, where they draw their food from the blood 
of the chick, thereby weakening it, and also clogging the 
passage so .hat the chick gasps for breath. 

Here again prevention is a question of sanitation. If 
the soil is free of the worms, there will be no gapes in the 
chickens. It is well, therefore, to keep the young chicks 
on clean new ground on which former broods have not been 
raised. 

Cholera. — Several different kinds of germs commonly 
found in the intestines of chickens may, under certain con- 
ditions, cause diseases known as cholera. True chicken 
cholera is caused only by one particular germ, however. 
Cholera is contracted by contact with fowls sick with the 
disease, by germs carried by new birds brought into the 
flock, by germs brought by wild birds that alight in the poul- 
try yard, or dogs or other animals that roam from place 
to place. 

It does not pay to try to cure fowls that h ave contracted 
the disease. It is best to kill them at once, burning or 
deeply burying the bodies. Care should all center on pre- 
vention. First of all, the flock must have sanitary sur- 
roundings — good air, sunshine, quarters that are dry and 
clean, and should have suitable food. 

The poultry house and yard must be frequently disin- 
fected. New fowls brought into the flock must be kept by 
themselves for a week to make sure they do not carry in- 
fection. Stray animals should be shut from the chicken 
yard. The careful following of these simple precautions 
will greatly lessen the danger from chicken cholera. 

Roup, — This is but another name for a kind of con- 
tagious catarrh among poultry which closely resembles in- 



POULTRY 



369 



fluenza, or grippe, in man. Roup is thought to be contracted 
only by contact with infected birds. It attacks the mem- 



3ICKLSS, 



/ 



- LBSSEZ--'' 



■F£ATM2^ 



FOimp 

SYs'"' ' 



~<j; ii'5w\ iJ'JrV' ■ 




'4 \ 




?he parts of a chicken. 



branes of the eye, mouth and throat, causing inflammation 
and a sticky discharge. The disease is accompanied by 
high fever. Roup may be brought into the flock by newly 



370 AGRICULTURE 

purchased birds, by fowls that have been taken to poultry 
shows, or by pigeons or other wild birds. 

Roup is one of few poultry diseases that may be suc- 
cessfully treated. The sick fowl should be separated from 
the flock and given a warm, dry, well-ventilated place. All 
the affected parts, should be washed with some antiseptic 
mixture. This may be done with a spray, or by plunging 
the head into the liquid wash. The following are suitable 
washes : 

1. Boric acid, 1 ounce; water, 1 quart, or 

2. Permanganate of potash, 1 dram; water, 1 quart, or 

3. Peroxide or hydrogen 1 ounce; water, 3 ounces. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Taking into account both what the chickens on your 
farm are fed and what they pick up, make a list of what 
goes into the ration of your flock. Compare with the ra- 
tions given in the chapter. Is any element lacking in what 
your chickens are getting? 

2. Estimate as carefully as you can the value of the 
feed given your chickens in one year ; now estimate the 
value of the eggs and meat yielded by your flock. What 
do you conclude ? Would it pay to keep a strict account of 
the expense and income of your flock for several months or 
a year, so you would know how you are coming out ? 

3. Estimate as closely as you can the number of eggs 
produced in a year by your flock. How many eggs does 
this average per hen? Is this a good average? 

4. If the average egg production from your flock is 
low, what is the cause: breed, age, care, or feeding? What 
would need to be done to improve the record ? How many 
hens have you more than two years old? 

5. Suppose you have for market fifty chickens that, 
without special fattening, will average five pounds each, 
and will bring ten cents a pound. Now also suppose that 
by two weeks of crate or close-yard feeding you can in- 
crease the average weight one pound for each bird, and get 



POULTRY 371 

fifteen cents a pound for the lot. If the feed used is just 
balanced by the increase in weight, what would be the gain 
from fattening? 

6. Select several fertile and several infertile eggs, and 
place them where they will keep at a temperature of eighty 
to ninety degrees : examine with the candler after twenty- 
four hours ; after forty-eight hours ; after seventy-two 
hours ; after ninety-six hours. What do you conclude as 
to the keeping qualities of fertile eggs, and of infertile 
eggs? 

7. I\Iake a drawing of your farm poultry house, show- 
ing all doors, windows, roosts, dropping boards, nests, etc. 
How does the building compare with the requirements given 
in the chapter ? What needs to" be done ? 

8. Talk with your father and mother about allowing 
you to take charge of a part or all of the chickens for a 
season, sharing the income. Then study all the helps you 
can find, and make a record for yourself and high profits 
for both. 

9. Show proper methods of keeping poultry records. 
Include in the items, cost of labor, feed, marketing, parcel- 
post cases, egg production, receipts from spring settings 
of eggs, cold storage costs, and poultry equipment. 

10. Show on the map of the United States the poultry 
sections, and indicate the poultry production both in number 
of poultry of various kinds and the egg production, as 
shown in the last census report. 

9. Poultry Demonstrations 

1. Demonstrate how to make equipment of various 
kinds, such as water and feeding troughs, colony house, trap 
nests. 

2. Demonstrate how to test eggs by candling, using 
a pasteboard box and a lamp. 

3. How to pack eggs to ship by parcel-post and for 
cold storage. 

4. How to operate an incubator. 

5. How to handle a sitting hen. 



372 



AGRICULTURE 



1. 

race. 

2. 

3. 
4. 

5. 



10. Poultry Play Contests 
Egg race, conducted on the same plan as potato 

Poultry judging contests. Use score-card. 

Egg scoring contest. Use commercial score-card. 

Breed variety naming contest. 

Drawing contest. In this contest all kinds of equip- 




A Minnesota club boy with bis floclv anrl colony bouse. 

ment, different breeds of poultry, poultry houses, runs, etc., 
may be used as a basis. , 

11. Poultry Club Project 

One of the most interesting club projects to be under- 
taken by the boys and girls is the poultry club work. The 
project may start with a setting of fifteen eggs, or the man- 
agement of a pen of chickens consisting of seven pullets and 
one cockerel for a season or a year. 



POULTRY '^yZ 

A four-year project. — The poultry club work should 
include, if possible, a four-year project in order to encour- 
age the use of the first year's results to the greatest possi- 
ble advantage. The second year club members should raise 
at least fifteen pure-bred pullets and two cockerels, and 
hatch at least three settings of eggs from the fifteen pullets. 
The third year the project should be based on twenty-five 
pullets and two cockerels and the hatching of at least five 
settings of eggs. The fourth year, fifty pullets and three 
cockerels and the hatching of at least six settings of eggs. 

Exhibit and award. — For the first year club members 
must agree to exhibit one dozen eggs from the 'club poultry 
and a pen of at least five chickens — four pullets and one 
cockerel — and each subsequent year, two dozen eggs and a 
pen of at least four pullets and one cockerel at the state, dis- 
trict or county fair. The basis of award for each succeed- 
ing year may be as follows : 

1. Number hatched (1 point to each egg in first course, or 

1 point for 3 chicks in second course) IS 

2. Number of live chicks at end of 10 weeks (1 point for 

each chick in first course, or 1 point for 3 chicks in sec- 
ond course) 15 

3. Number of cockerels marketed, at months of age; 

number ; weight ; value, $ 10 

4. Number of birds remaining and total weight of birds IS 

5. Profit on investment (total value at local market price, 

less cost of feed, setting of eggs, labor and equipment) IS 

6. Score-card applied to birds with reference to quality, 

breed, condition and vitality IS 

7. Equipment : character of lot, pens, fence, feeding and 

housing, roost, light, runs, etc 15 

Total score 100 

It is recommended that whenever possible a pen of 
chickens be kept on the school grounds as property of the 
school, and turned over to the care of certain club mem- 
bers during the summer vacation period. 



PART V. FARM ECONOMICS 



CHAPTER XXIV 
FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT 

FARMING, like banking or running a railroad, requires 
good business management. Not hard work alone, but 
careful planning is necessary to success. Brains are com- 
ing to be quite as essential as muscle on a modern farm. 

1. Planning the Farm and Its Work 

In Europe, land is high and labor cheap ; in the United 
States, land is comparatively cheap and labor expensive. 
The first principle for the American farmer therefore is 
so to select his farm and its enterprises as to make the best 
possible use of the labor available upon it. This is to say 
that the work should be so diversified as to give the largest 
possible number of working days during the year to the 
family, hired help, teams and machinery. Idleness soon 
eats up .the profits of labor, whether it be man, beast or 
machine that is idle. 

Selecting and planning the farm. — The farm should 
be carefully selected with reference (1) to its soil; (2) its 
adaptability to the enterprises to be entered into, such as 
stock raising or cropping; (3) its nearness to markets, 
school, church and neighbors ; (4) the length of season and 
375 



376 AGRICULTURE 



favorable climate; (5) its general suitability for being made 
into a pleasant and profitable homestead where an attractive 
home can be established. 

The equipment. — With the nature of the farm enter- 
prises in mind, the buildings, fences, divisions of fields 
and all other improvements should be planned with great 
care to fit into the general project. The machinery should 
be adapted to the soil and the crops and should receive 
the best of care. Too much machinery means too large 



It pays to build good fences. 

an investment, and too httle means poor farming and loss 
of labor. 

Crops and animals. — Many farmers are wearing out 
their soil and obtaining poor crops because of lack of suf- 
ficiently diversified farming. They do not manage well if 
they neglect to include in their system the legumes, orchard, 
garden and wood-lot products, or other crops adapted to 
their locality. Or, perhaps certain crops are raised or ani- 
mals kept even at an actual loss, thus neutralizing the 
profits on other crops or animals. This all suggests the 
need of better management on such farms. 



FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT 377 

2. Administration of the Farm 

The general tendency among American farmers is to in- 
troduce the handhng of too many enterprises and the culti- 
vation of too much land. Our farms are larger than those 
of any other country, and the amount produced per acre 
less, than in most other countries. 

Planning to get the most out of labor and soil. — Good 
administration gets the most out of every day of labor and 
out of every acre of land. Each piece of work is carefully 
planned. Fields are tilled and crops harvested at the right 
time. A faulty machine is repaired before it breaks down. 
Unprofitable cows and horses are disposed of and not kept 
at a loss. Fertilizers are used whenever they will pay. Gar- 
dens and orchards are sprayed when necessary. No poor 
seed is ever planted. Herds and flocks are kept in good 
health by care and sanitary conditions. The home is com- 
fortable, convenient and well equipped. Members of the 
family are given opportunity for recreation and amusement 
as a rest from labor. 

Farm bookkeeping. — Every enterprising farmer 
should keep a system of records or book accounts. These 
need not be elaborate, but they must be accurate. Without 
this it is impossible to determine the sources of profits or 
losses, and hence impossible to manage crops or stock in- 
telligently. 

A system of book accounts will show whether the farm 
is returning to the owner fair wages and reasonable inter- 
est on the investment. A farmer who can make average 
day wages, and in addition five per cent, interest on the 
money invested, is ranked as a good farmer. Many make 
much more than this, while others make less. 

The set of farm books should show an inventory at the 
beginning of the year of all stock, grain, roughage and 
the like on hand. At the end of the year another inven- 




Guud iii;iriiiin-r.v in ;i |)iuttt;ible investment. 




Well-arranged cattle yai'ds. 



FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT 379 

tory, with an itemized cash record, one list of bills owed 
others, and another list of bills due from others will serve 
the purpose very well on the average farm. 

Marketing farm products. — Farmers find that it pays 
well to give careful attention to the grading, crating and 
standardizing of farm products for the market. It is good 
business as well as a matter of pride to establish a uniformity 
of standard, using a particular type of box, crate or parcel- 
post pack marked with the owner's special label or trade 
mark. Merchants, packers or customers will soon show 
their appreciation of a standard product by being willing 
to pay more for it than for ungraded products. 

The farmer's need of information. — Intelligent hand- 
ling of farm business requires that the farmer should be 
thoroughly abreast of the times in information. He will 
need a daily paper giving market quotations and crop re- 
ports. He should also be familiar with the best farm jour- 
nals, a few standard books on agriculture, and the bulletins 
and circulars of the United States Department of Agricul- 
ture and his state college of agriculture and by means of 
these be able to obtain much of daily value for all farm 
enterprises. 

Ten important points in farm administration. — Doctor 
W. J. Spillman, of the United States Department of Agri- 
culture, gives the following factors as underlying success- 
ful farming: 

1. Low real estate prices for the land cultivated. 

2. Production of commodities for which the supply is less 

than the demand. 

3. Management of the business on as large a scale as capi- 

tal and managerial ability will permit. 

4. Production of commodities of the highest quality. 

5. A reputation for reliability. 

6. Location for good markets, and ability to buy and sell 

'profitably. 



380 



AGRICULTURE 



7. Keeping only animals of highest productive capacity. 

8. Large yields with relatively little labor and fertilizer. 




A kitclieu cabiuet aud youug house mistress. 



9. Production at lov^r cost. 
10. Production of staple commodities for permanent profits. 



FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT 381 

The following ten commandments for southern 
agriculture, as taught by the late Doctor Seaman A. 
Knapp, will be of value to all who are interested in 
southern farm management. 

TEN COMMANDMENTS OF AGRICULTURE 

"At an early period it was found necessary to 
evolve from the mass of ethical teaching a few gen- 
eral rules for living, called The Ten Commandments, 
by which a man could be moral without going 
through a course of theology. Just so, in order to in- 
struct the average farmer how successfully to con- 
duct his farm operations so as to secure a greater net 
gain from the farm, it is necessary first to deduce 
from the mass of agricultural teachings a few general 
rules of procedure. They are called The Ten Com- 
mandments of Agriculture, by the practice of which a 
man may be a good farmer in any State without being 
a graduate from a college of agriculture." 

1. Prepare a deep and thoroughly pulverized seed 
bed, well drained; break in the fall to the depth of 
eight, ten or twelve inches, according to the soil with 
implements that will not bring too much of the subsoil 
to the surface (the foregoing depths should be reached 
gradually). 

2. Use seed of the best variety, intelligentl} se- 
lected and carefully stored. 

3. In cultivated crops, give the rows and the 
plants in the rows a space suited to the plant, the 
soil and the climate. 

4. Use intensive tillage during the growing per- 
iod of the crops. 



382 AGRICULTUR'i^: 

5. Secure a high content of humus in the soil by 
the use of legumes, barnyard manure, farm refuse, and 
commercial fertilizers. 

6. Carry out a systematic crop rotation with a 
winter cover crop on southern farms. 

7. Accomplish more work in a day by using more 
horse power and better implements. 

8. Increase the farm stock to the extent of utiliz- 
ing all the waste products and idle lands of the farm. 

9. Produce all the food required for the men and 
animals on the farm. 

10. Keep an account of each farm product, in 
order to know from which the gain or loss arises. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Name all the different enterprises on your home 
farm. 

2. What is meant by seasonal distribution of labor? 
Name some of the things that a farmer and his men can 
do on rainy days in the summer and on stormy days in the 
winter. 

3. Make an inventory of your farm supplies at the 
present time, such as stock, machinery, grain, hay, etc. 
Make a list of purchases in these lines during the last year. 
Make a list of the sales. Talk with your father about keep- 
ing under his direction a set of farm records for a year. 

4. Choose some farm in the neighborhood and, under 
the teacher's direction, make a plan for reorganizing its 
management as to cropping, stock, machinery, buildings, 
drainage, laying off of fields, fencing, etc., with a view to 
better results. 

3. The Farm Home 

Successful farming must make the home the center oi 
all interest and effort. The final purpose of increasing the 
fertility of the soil, raising good crops, and producing fine 




A hand separator. 



26 



384 AGRICULTURE 

herds and flocks is to make a better home thereby. Little 
is gained by making more money, buying more land and 
raising more stock if the home is not made to share in the 
prosperity. 

The farmhouse. — ^The farmhouse should be comfort- 
able and attractive. There is little excuse in this day for 
building houses that are ugly and repellent ; for even mod- 
erate priced buildings can be planned to look well and at 
the same time be convenient and homelike. The home, 
whether large or small, should be one in which every mem- 
ber takes pride, and where happiness and contentment may 
reign. 

Plan and equipment. — The farmhouse should be 
planned for convenience. For there is much hard work to 
be done by the housewife, and every care should be taken 
to save her time and strength. A well organized kitchen, 
with running water, a good sink with drainage, a movable 
kitchen cabinet, plenty of table space, cupboards, oil or 
gas heater for summer use, and a fireless cooker, is one of 
the first requirements in planning a house. 

Practical conveniences. — The farm home should have 
a well lighted basement with cement floor, a fully equipped 
laundry with water-pipes and stationary tubs connected 
with a drain, to save the lifting and carrying of water. 
Suitable vegetable bins should be provided and so arranged 
that they may be cooled from the outside. A bathroom is a 
practical necessity on the farm as well as city home and can 
be supplied with water from an elevated windmill or cistern 
tank, A toilet and lavatory should also be a part of this 
equipment. The telephone now belongs to the farm as 
much as to the town, and electric lighting and power, even, 
are now being made available to many farms through the 
extension of trolley lines. All these things can be had with- 



FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT 



385 



out great cost. They require chiefly a spirit of enterprise 
and a little careful planning. 

Labor-saving devices. — The wise farmer buys good 
machinery to till his land and harvest his crops. His wife 
should also have the advantage of modern labor-saving de- 
vices in her work. The best of cooking utensils, fruit and 





° a ™_' ^ Q n n 



A fine liomestead, but lacking in trees. 

vegetable canning outfits, automatically heated flat irons, 
cleaning devices, hardwood floors, rugs and other similar 
helps to good housekeeping should not be wanting. For such 
equipment now belongs in every modern home, and will 
save much time and drudgery. 

Recreation and culture. — Most farm homes can afford 
a supply of good books and magazines. These lead both 
to education and enjoyment. Good pictures and well deco- 
rated rooms also add much to the home spirit. Musical in- 
struments are within the reach of thousands of farm homes. 



386 AGRICULTURE 

and prove one of the best of investments. Many interesting 
games can also be had at little cost. 

The back yard. — The back yard should be quite as 
clean and attractive as the front yard. No refuse or litter, 
chicken coops, garbage heaps or mud-holes should be tol- 
erated. Closed garbage cans should be used, and every- 
thing done away with that will attract flies or mosquitoes, 
or be the breeding place for disease germs. 

Drainage. — No farm house is complete without a 
drain leading out through the basement and oh to a cess- 
pool some distance from the house. Cesspools can be con- 
structed at almost no expense except for the labor, and so 
made as not to endanger wells in the vicinity. 

4. Other Farm Buildings 

Much time and labor can be saved by a proper arrange- 
ment and placing of farm buildings. While barns should 
not be located too near the house, neither should they be 
so far away to cause unnecessary steps in going back and 
forth. 

Making a plan. — Before barns, poultry houses, hog- 
houses or corn cribs are erected a plan for the whole system 
of buildings likely to be needed should be made. The dis- 
tance of carrying feed, water and milk should be care- 
fully considered, and all other conditions taken into account 
in placing the structures. The buildings themselves should 
be planned with the greatest convenience and economy of 
labor in view. 

Barnyards. — The appearance of a barnyard is one of 
the best tests of a good farmer. The yard should, first of 
all, be clean and free from filth. All low places that col- 
lect pools of water should be filled. Manure should be 
cleaned up and spread on the fields. No old machinery, 



FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT 



387 



piles of boards, and scraps of rubbish should litter the place. 
The entire set of farm buildings, yards and fences should 
show taste and good management and be pleasing to the 
eye. To accomplish this does not add materially to the 
expense of operating the farm; in the long run it does 
not even require more time than to allow the homestead 




Well-kept barns. 

to run at loose ends. A well kept homestead is largely a 
matter of thoughtful planning, and a desire to make the 
farm home attractive as well as profitable. 



Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a study of the plans for several farm homes, 
and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each plan, 
finally selecting your favorite plan. 

2. Take a look at your home door yard, and decide 
whether any improvement is necessary. Do the same for 
your barnyards. Is there old machinery or rubbish about 



388 AGRICULTURE 

^that tieeds cleaning up? Are there any fences or gates that 
:need repairing? 

3. Make a plan of your farm homestead, locatirrgi^ all! 
of the buildings. Now suggest any rearrangement that 
would make the homestead more convenient or attiuctive. 

4. Make a plan showing how water could be baougbt 
by underground pipes from an elevated tank on youir wiiwi- 
mill or silo, (1) to the kitchen of your house, an^ (2) to 
your barns. Also make a drawing of a drain leading from 
your basernent to a cesspool ; show a plan also oM the cess- 
pool. What is a septic tank? 

5. Consider carefully what practical projenA you could 
carry out for the improvement either of the appearance or 
the convenience of your farm homestead, sind talk with 
your father about undertaking it. Show a detailed esti- 
mate of any expeiTse. iuvolved, including i^bQt^ 



CHAPTER XXV 
THE HOME GROUNDS AND WOOD LOT 

NO home place Is complete without trees, plants and 
shrubs. Even with costly and pretentious buildings, a 
homestead may look barren and inhospitable from lack of 
the decorative and comfortable effect of shade trees, groves, 
climbing vines and blossoming plants. One should learn 
not only to make his farm pay 'but to make it interesting 
and attractive. 

1. Beautifying the Home Grounds 

The house lot and lawn of the farm home can be made 
especially beautiful and interesting. For there is more room 
on the farm than in the town or city, and the trees and 
plants needed for its decoration will cost but little except a 
reasonable amount of care. Well kept grounds add a great 
deal to the market value of a farm, and contribute even 
more to the beauty and comfort of the home. 

Plan for setting. — To produce the best results, the 
setting of trees and shrubbery should follow some complete 
and well devised plan. The effect of the most beautiful 
vegetation may be lost by careless or improper placing. 
When used for decoration or shade, trees should usually 
not be set in rows, unless along a driveway or boundary 
line ; nor should they be so blocked together that they shut 
off the view of the house. They may stand as single iso- 
lated specimens, or in irregular groups. Trees often are 

389 



390 



AGRICULTURE 



placed too near the house, thus excluding the sun and caus- 
ing dampness. 

Shrubs, likewise, appear to best advantage when set 
in clumps, or irregularly to make a border for the lawn. 
Climbing vines can be used to screen porches, cover garden 
fences, hide unsightly sheds and outbuildings, or clamber 
over stumps, rocks or banks. 

Selecting varieties. — One can select from an almost 




The shrubs and trees add much to this farm home. 



endless variety of trees, shrubs and vines. Each variety 
has its own peculiar individuality, which should be studied 
and known before the selection is made. A plant, once 
given a place on the grounds, becomes a permanent part 
of the home-place, and should therefore be chosen with as 
much care as are our friends. 

Shade trees should be hardy, well-shaped, broad leafed, 
grow to a good size, and attract no troublesome insects. 
Elms, maples, oaks, ashes, basswood, catalpa, locusts, nut 



THE HOME GROUNDS AND WOOD LOT 39X 

and fruit trees, and, in the South, magnolias, the redbud 
and live oak, are among the favorites. 

Shrubs are to be selected both for tb^ foliage and 
flowers. With care, provision can be made for thf. appear- 
ance of blossoms during each month of the summer, and 
for an attractive variety of foliage throughout the season. 

Flowering plants. — The plan for the home grounds 




A fine homestead management, showing wood lot, orchard and a 
good set of buildings. 

should include a few beds of flowering plants. Most of 
these may be perennials, which will require almost no care 
after the bed has become well established. With the addi- 
tion of a few varieties of hardy bulbs for annual planting, 
beautiful effects can be produced with practically no cost 
and with the expenditure of very little time. 

The lawn. — Nothing adds more to the appearance of 
a homestead than a well kept lawn. The lawn should first 
of all be well smoothed, the low places being filled and all 



392 AGRICULTURE 

obstructions removed. The soil should be rich and well 
drained. For the greater part of the United States, a mix- 
ture of blue-grass and red-top, with perhaps a small amount 
of white clover, makes a good lawn covering. 

The lawn must be close-mown if it is to produce a pleas- 
ing effect. If allowed to grow up, the grass becomes tufted 
and coarse, besides looking ragged and unkempt. Farm 
stock should not be pastured on the lawn. Their trampling 
will produce imevenness that interferes with the lawn- 
mower, and plants, shrubbery and young trees are sure to 
suffer from being browsed. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Draw a plan of your home grounds, locating all 
the trees, vines and shrubs, and giving the names of va- 
rieties. 

2. In your drawing also show the position, size and 
shape of all the flower beds, specifying the varieties of 
plants, and whether annuals or perennials. 

3. Make a complete plan for the decoration of your 
home grounds, taking into account the trees, shrubs, and 
plants already set out. What varieties should be added? 
Are any trees or shrubs in such positions that they should 
be removed? 

4. Make a plan for decorating the school grounds, speci- 
fying by variety each tree and shrub, and showing its loca- 
tion. 

2. The Farm Wood Lot 

Every farm place should have its own wood lot. It 
costs little to start, requires almost no care after the first 
year or two, and yields large returns. 

Uses of the wood lot. — Poles, timbers and posts are 
constantly needed on every farm. When there is no wood 
lot to supply them, they must either be bought, or the farm 
suffer for their lack. And lumber, posts and timbers of 
every sort are becoming more expensive from year to year 



THE HOME GROUNDS AND WOOD LOT 393 

as our forests are being depleted. Fire-wood raised on the 
farm costs very much less than if bought in the market,, 
and so scarce is it becoming in many regions that it can not 
be had at all unless produced at home. 

The wood lot can often be so placed as to serve for a 




A good lot of Hampshire Downs aud a Hue wood lot. 
windbreak for the farm buildings, and at the same time 
add to the beauty and value of the homestead. When the 
trees are grown they afford welcome shade for animals, 
contributing both to their comfort and profit. 

Birds are attracted to the wood lot, and from this shel- 
ter make sallies out upon the harmful insects that prey on 



394 



AGRICULTURE 



crops or gardens. From the friendly tree-tops they also 
pour out their tribute of song. 

The location and size of the wood lot. — It may not 
always be desirable to plant a large wood lot near the build- 
ings. When such is the case, low wet places, steep hillsides, 
or small irregular pieces of ground not suitable for culti- 
vation can often be utilized. 

From one-half an acre to several acres of ground can 
profitably be set to trees on a fair-sized farm. While the 




Using the wood lot for picnics and club festivals. 



returns are not immediate as with other crops, yet the profit 
is reasonably sure in the end. Many far-sighted farmers 
are now providing for the fence posts and timbers they 
will need ten or twenty years hence by setting out and 
caring for trees in a wood lot. It is estimated that Minne- 
sota farmers set out a million trees in 1913 and in many 
other regions the movement is quite as marked. 

Varieties of trees for the wood lot. — It is impossible 
to recommend definite varieties of trees for the wood lot, 



THE HOME GROUNDS AND WOOD LOT 395 

since this depends on the region and the use to be made of 
the timber. Some prefer to plant the faster-growing soft 
wood trees, while others are willing to wait longer for the 
harder woods to grow. An excellent plan is to plant a 
number of varieties. Not only will this allow a mixture of 
the slow and the fast growing trees, but provide a variety 
of timber suitable for different purposes of utility and com- 
fort for the farm. 

From the eastern to the middle western states the fa- 
vorite trees seem to be the different varieties of maple, 
elm, oak, locust, ash, fir, basswood, hickory, walnut, box- 
elder, Cottonwood, yellow poplar, catalpa, etc. 

In the drier regions such as western Kansas and Ne- 
braska, Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado, it is difficult to start 
successfully some of these varieties. Among the best 
drought resisting trees are the black locust, green ash, Osage 
orange and Russian mulberry. In the southern and far 
western states practically all varieties suitable to the North 
and East can be grown and many others besides. 

Starting the wood lot. — ^The wood lot may be started, 
in the case of most trees, either by planting the seed, or 
by setting out young trees. A common method of starting 
a grove of hardy catalpa, for example, is to prepare the 
seed bed as if for corn. Catalpa seed is then planted, and 
the field cultivated for several years. The young trees are 
sometimes cut back to the ground after two years of growth 
for the purpose of producing straighter and more sturdy 
trees. The growth of the tree is not retarded by this 
process, 

A seed bed for trees can easily be started, and the trees 
transplanted to the desired positions when the seedlings are 
from one to three years old, A small seed bed will supply 
trees for a large wood lot. 



396 AGRICULTURE 

3. Tree Enemies 

While most of the common trees are not subject to a 
large number of enemies, yet they must have reasonable 
care and protection if they are to thrive. 

Farm animals. — One of the most common mistakes 
in starting young trees is to allow them to be exposed to 
stock. Cattle, sheep or hogs are sure to injure the trees 
by grazing upon the leaves and branches, by trampling 
them, or by rubbing against them. The wood lot should 
be fenced, and all stock excluded until the trees are well 
grown. Horses should never be tied to trees. 

Weeds and sod. — Young trees are as easily injured as 
any other plant by weeds or grass. Many people seem to 
think that because large trees can take care of themselves 
against these enemies young trees can do the same. But 
trees once checked in their growth by the choking of weeds 
or sod will never fully recover. 

Insect and fungous enemies. — Shade and timber trees 
are, on the whole, less subject to insect and fungous attacks 
than fruit trees. Yet occasionally even the most hardy trees 
succumb to such enemies. The elm, one of the healthiest 
of our trees, has recently suffered greatly in certain regions. 
The chestnut has also been seriously afflicted with a bark 
disease. Whole forests of fir have died in southern locali- 
ties. Even the catalpa is subject to a fungous trouble at 
certain stages of its growth. Whenever a considerable 
number of trees in a locality show signs of disease, an 
expert should be consulted and his directions followed. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Join with the teacher and class in making a collec- 
tion of all the woods in your locality. Use seasoned woods 
for specimens when possible, selecting sticks two or three 



THE HOME GROUNDS AND WOOD LOT 397 

inches in diameter, and sawing them about four inches 
long. SpHt each specimen, then smooth and sandpaper the 
flat side and ends and spread a coat of shellac over the fin- 




Power spraying of trees. 



ished parts. Learn to identify each specimen both by the 
bark and by the texture and grain. 

2. Gather and preserve in wide-mouthed bottles samples 



398 AGRICULTURE 

of the seeds of all the trees in your vicinity. Learn to 
identify these seeds. Plant some of each, and learn to iden- 
tify the young plant of each variety. Consider the pos- 
sibility of starting a tree seed bed on the school ground, 
where the seeds of the different trees can be planted and 
seedlings raised for study or replanting, either ou the school 
grounds or at the homes. 

3. How can you tell the age of a tree after it is cut 
down? Find some freshly cut tree and discover its age. 
Can you tell from the annual rings any years when the 
tree did not make a good growth? 

4. Make a collection of the leaves of all the different 
trees available, and learn to identify them. 

5. What is the difference between plain-sawn and quar- 
ter-sawn lumber? Look at different pieces of oak furniture, 
and decide whether the lumber was plain or quarter-sawn. 
Why does some hard pine flooring have a tendency to splin- 
ter up, while other does not? 

6. Locate on the map of the United States the forest 
reserves of our country ; the lumber producing sections. 

7. Estimate the cost of producing a ten-acre wood lot 
of some prevailing trees of your section. 

8. Write down the names of all the different trees 
you can think of common to your state, in the order of 
their importance to the farm. 

4. Demonstrations on Home Grounds and Wood Lot 

1. Demonstrate how properly to remove and trans- 
plant a shrub or bush. 

2. Demonstrate how to make a tree graft ; how to make 
a bud graft. 

3. Demonstrate how to prune the different kinds of 
trees. 

4. Show the proper method of spraying for different 
insects, diseases and blights. 

5. Show how to treat the tree-trunk to prevent insects 
from passing from the ground into the tree. 

6. Demonstrate different methods of tree surgery, such 



THE HOME GROUNDS AND WOOD LOT 399 

as repairing injured limbs and diseased and decayed spots. 
How does this compare with medical and surgical treat- 
ment of human beings? 

7. Demonstrate how to lay off a lawn with a view to 
artistic arrangements for the lawn itself and as related to 
the home, buildings, pathway and roadway. 

8. Demonstrate how to sharpen and set a fence post. 

9. Show how to set a comer post and brace it. 

10. Demonstrate how to make bird houses, bird baths, 
watering troughs, feeding platforms, etc., on the lawn or in 
the shrubbery, trees, and out in the wood lot, to encourage 
and help the conservation of bird life. 

5. Play Contests for Home Grounds and Wood Lot 
There can be no better way to arouse interest in the im- 
proving of home grounds and the planting and care of wood 
lots than to inaugurate a large number of play contests, 
related to this work. Practically all of the demonstrations 
outlined above can be so organized as to become very inter- 
esting play contests. Illustrations: 

1. Tree naming contest. 

2. Spelling contest from a list of names of tiees, shrubs, 
plants and flowers. 

3. Drawing contest, showing the plan and arrangement 
of lawns, wood lots and farm home grounds. 

4. Wood collection and exhibit contest. 

5. Manual-training contests, in which the pupils are 
to contest in making articles from wood, leaves, bark, buds 
and flowers. 

6. Tree judging contest. 

7. Lawn mowing contest, the same to cover a season 
and to involve not only the mowing of the lawn but its 
proper up-keep, repair and improvement. 

8. Essay writing contest on the home grounds and 
wood lot. 

27 



400 . AGRICULTURE 

6. Home Grounds and Wood Lot Club Projects 

A number of very interesting club projects can be or- 
ganized in connection with the care and management of 
the home grounds, front yard, back yard, wood lot, trees, 
shrubbery, etc. The basis of award for these clubs will have 
to be modified to suit conditions. In general the award may 
be based on the following five points : 

1. General plan and artistic arrangement 20 

2. Management and methods employed during the season 20 

3. Profit on investment or results based upon object of the 

project 20 

4. Exhibit of products or appearance and results shown at 

close of project period 20 

5. Written story on "How I Did My Club Work" 20 

Total score -. — 



CHAPTER XXVI 
THE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL AGENT 

TWO new agencies have recently entered the field of ag- 
ricultural education and rural development: These are 
(1) the county agricultural agent, and (2) the county farm 
bureau. The latter consists of an organization of the farm- 
ers of a county for the purpose of furnishing a kind of 
clearing house for agricultural information. The county 
agent is an agricultural leader whose business is to organ- 
ize, lead, instruct and give expert advice to the farmers 
or to pupils and teachers of agriculture in the schools of 
the county. 

1. The Work of the County Agent 

First work in the South. — The advent of the boll- 
weevil in the cotton-fields of Texas was responsible for 
the beginning of this work. So great were its ravages that 
in 1906 the United States Department of Agriculture put 
Doctor S. A. Knapp in charge of demonstration work show- 
ing how the pest could be exterminated. From this begin- 
ning there has been a very rapid growth of this type of 
work, until at the present time county agricultural agents 
are scattered all over the United States. 

The county workers. — Men employed as county agri- 
cultural agents are required to be possessed of scientific 
information on the problems of agriculture. They are ex- 
pected also to have had practical farming experience. Plans 
have already been made by which the county agent is 
assisted by a woman agent who will be thoroughly trained 

401 



402 AGRICULTURE 

and fitted to advise and direct the girls and women in all 
matters relating to the making of better homes. Several hun- 
dred women agents are now at work in as many counties. 

Organization of the county work. — The county agents 
live in the county and are supplied with an office where 
they may be consulted. They usually are furnished with 
some means of transportation so that they may travel about 
the county, from farm to farm and from school to school. 
In this way the county agents carry to the very door of the 
farm home and the public school the services of specialists. 
They are able to bring to those who can not go to college 
the help, advice and leadership of the best scientific inves- 
tigators, and really make the farms a part of the campus, 
class rooms and laboratories of the agricultural college and 
demonstration centers of the United States Department of 
Agriculture. 

Character of help rendered. — ^The work of the county 
agents is calculated to increase the profits of farming, and 
the comforts and efficiency of the farm home ; to aid in con- 
serving and building up the soil ; and to encourage the ad- 
vancement of community education and social interests. 
Like the physician or surgeon, the county agents are to be 
called when advice, treatment or preventative measures are 
needed. They plan for a system of demonstrations to show 
the best methods of managing the soil, preparing the seed 
bed, selecting and caring for seed, management and care 
of farm animals, organization and care of gardens and 
orchards, and the handling and conservation of farm build- 
ings and machinery. 

If a herd is stricken with tuberculosis, the hogs with 
cholera, or the corn-field with cutworms, the county agent 
should be notified and his help secured. If he is not able 
directly to give information and aid he will know where 
to secure assistance on short notice. In like manner the 



THE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL AGENT 



403 



county agent will be of special assistance in planning the 
proper management of soils and crops when the seasons 
are too dry or too wet ; in the best organization of farm 
enterprises ; and in the management of all of the efficiency 
factors important to the success of American agriculture. 









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.^gA»»p»»«»r.!m.-a.^f. 



The county Uiirieultural ageut is discussing grain problems witli 
tlie farmers at thrasliing time. 



2. Financial Support 

The Smith-Lever law. — The county agent is usually 
supported in part by federal and in part by local funds. The 
Smith-Lever law passed by Congress made federal aid avail- 
able for every state in the union beginning with the year 
1914. The entire amount appropriated for the first year 
was four hundred and eighty thousand dollars, to be divided 
equally among the forty-eight states. The appropriation is 
gradually to increase until the federal government is con- 



404 AGRICULTURE 

tributing some four and one-half million dollars annually for 
the encouragement of agriculture. 

The Smith-Lever law contemplates that the greater part 
of this immense fund shall be spent in supporting county 
agricultural agents, state and district leaders, boys' and girls' 
club work, demonstration work in home economics, and 
other assistance in shaping and building up agricultural 
interests throughout the nation. The agricultural colleges 
and the United States Department of Agriculture are to 
cooperate in carrying out the provisions of the act. 

Steps to be taken in securing a county agent. — The 
matter of securing an agent for a county should first be 
taken up with the state leader, whose headquarters are 
with the agricultural college of each state. He is in a po- 
sition to assist in planning and conducting the campaign for 
an agent and can give information in regard to available 
sources of county, state and federal funds, and the amount 
of funds necessary properly to finance the movement. When 
the county is ready for the appointment of an agent, the 
state leader will be able to recommend a man qualified for 
the work. 

3. The County Agent and the School 

The county agents seek not only to help the farmers 
in their immediate problems, but also to advance agricul- 
tural education in every possible way. 

Help for the school. — Every agent desires to assist 
the work in agriculture in the schools of his county. In 
many instances the county agents and the county superin- 
tendents plan and carry on their work together. Teachers 
and pupils can always feel free to call on the agent for 
help or advice in connection with any agricultural club 
or individual project. 

When it is impossible to reach the agent for a personal 



THE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL AGENT 405 

interview, the telephone or mail can be employed. Pupils 
and teachers should become acquainted with the agent per- 
sonally, attend the demonstrations and public meetings, and 
study the experiments and investigations he makes. Think 
over carefully the work of the farm and if either you or 
your parents have problems that are annoying — troubles of 
any kind with soil, crops, or stock — seek the advice and 
help of the agent at once. 













— . „ 


'.**■• 


\; 


&' 


V 




1 




- '" 


• 


^ 




i 




ll^ 


^ 


m 


I^UK^j^^^^^nHH 


J 



Apple club boys pruning orchard under direction of the county 
agent, Cortland County, New York. " 

Advice on club projects. — Club projects should be 
selected with great care. The county agent should be con- 
sulted as to the best project for the boys to undertake, and 
the best one for the interest of the girls and the home. All 
of the club projects outlined in this book will be of espe- 
cial interest to the county agricultural agents and they 
will be glad to give encouragement and assistance to the 
work. They will help plan also the work of the manual- 



406 AGRICULTURE 

training classes in the rural and village schools so that it 
will fit into the needs of the farm, the garden and the 
home. 

Special programs. — The county agent should be in- 
vited to the school, and especially in connection with the 
special programs of an industrial and agricultural nature. 
His help can be secured in the conducting of agricultural 
demonstrations, the judging of grains, fruits, vegetables 
and stock, and the organization of rural games and con- 
tests. His advice will be valuable in determining the basis 
of award and the methods of judging a contest. He should 
also be consulted with reference to suitable circulars and 
Fanners' Bulletins for correlation reading in connection 
with the agricultural and home economics studies of the 
school. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Have you a county agricultural agent in your 
county? If so, who, and how long has he served the 
county? Where is his office located? Who pays his sal- 
ary? 

2. It was estimated that in one county the work 
of the agent increased the yield of corn by five bushels an 
acre in a certain year. The county is twenty-four miles 
square and eighty per cent, of the area is under cultivation. 
Of that under cultivation forty-five per cent, was in corn. 
What was the agent's help on the corn crop worth to the 
county, figuring corn at fifty cents a bushel? 

3. If your county has no agent, has the matter of se- 
curing one been discussed? Do you know what steps would 
have to be taken to secure an agent? How would the ex- 
penses have to be met? If you are not certain on these 
questions inquire of your state agricultural college or the 
United States Department of Agriculture. 

4. What farm projects in your community need the 
advice of a county agent? Do you know of land that is 
foul or run down ? Pastures that are weedy or dying out ? 
Swamps that need, drainage ? Orchards that do not bear 



THE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL AGENT 407 

profitably? Flocks or herds that are not profitable? Rav- 
ages of insects or diseases that cause severe loss ? Hogs 
dying from cholera? 

5. On w^hat farm or garden project would you espe- 
cially like advice from an agricultural agent in order to 
make sure of success the first year? 

6. How much money is available this year from the 
Smith-Lever act for the county agent and farm demonstra- 
tion movement? Upon what conditions is this secured and 
how is it administered ? What part of this does your county 
get? (Secure a copy of the law from your congressman.) 

7. Does your state college of agriculture have an ex- 
tension department? If so, name the officers and leaders, 
such as director of extension, state agent in charge of club 
work, state agent in charge of county agents and demon- 
stration work. (Write for its literature on club and ex- 
tension work.) 

8. To what extent do the Department of Education and 
the normal schools of your state encourage agricultural 
and home economic education? Do they have officials who 
supervise this type of work? If so, name them. 

9. What is the County Farm Bureau? Do you have 
one in your county? Name its officers and agents. 

10. What is the American Federation of Farm Bu- 
reaus? Where are the national headquarters? Who are 
its officers? 

IL Name the secretaries of agriculture since its 
founding. How is it supported and what services can 
farmers secure from the Department of Agriculture? 

12. Tell the history of some Important agricultural 
movement, organization, or institution, such as "Boys' and 
Girls' Club Movement," "County Farm Bureau," "United 
States Department of Agriculture," "Farm Granges." 
"Farmers' Unions," "International Institute of Agricul- 
ture," Rome, Italy, "Rural Credit Societies of Canada," etc. 



o 



CHAPTER XXVII 
FARM IMPLEMENTS AND MECHANICS 

1. Importance of Implements and Tools 

NE of the most important and interesting phases of 
agriculture is the study of farm implements, their 
origin, history, utility, value, proper care and up-keep. 

Tillage and tools. — Good crops and large profits usu- 
ally depend upon wise management and proper tillage ; and 
good tillage requires the use of tools adapted to the soil, 
the particular crops, and the condition under which the 
farming is done. It is poor economy to farm with unfit 
tools, or implements in poor repair. On the other hand 
it is possible to have too large an amount of money in- 
vested in farm implements and machinery. A number of 
the larger farm machines, such as corn harvesters, thrash- 
ing machines or shredders, can be owned cooperatively in 
a community and made to do the work of four to ten farm- 
ers instead of one. This will reduce both the first cost and 
the up-keep. 

The care of machinery. — It is generally considered 
that a machine kept in good repair, and well housed when 
not in use, will last as long doing the work of five farmers 
as a machine owned by a single farmer and doing but one- 
fifth of the work, if neglected and allowed to stand out- 
of-doors in rain, snow and all kinds of weather when idle. 
There is no better test of the progressiveness and good 
management of a farm than the way the farm tools and 
machinery are treated. 

408 




A yuung farmer mechanic with a well-eiiuipped shop. ~ 




Practica) farm mechanics. 



410 AGRICULTURE 

2. The Farmer as a Mechanic 

Every farmer should, at least to a degree, be a me- 
chanic. This is not with a view to manufacturing imple- 
ments, or even to the building of his own barns and houses, 
but to enable him to keep the implements, barns and houses 
constantly in good repair. 

The farm v\^ork-shop. — A great many dollars can be 
saved on the average farm if the farmer has equipped him- 
self with a little work-shop and a number of the necessary 
repair tools. A loose bolt, a broken rivet, a loosened board, 
or a brace out of position can easily be repaired by a prac- 
tical farmer, while if it is neglected it may result in greater 
breakage, with the consequent loss of time and money. A 
large number of minor pieces of farm equipment, such as 
watering and feeding troughs, feed racks, seed trays, test 
boxes, fireless cookers, bins, shelving, wagon boxes and 
hog racks can profitably be made in the farm shop. 

There are always plenty of rainy days and occasionally 
periods of time when the rush and heavy work of the fields 
have been completed and an opportunity given for repair 
work and the making of practical necessities belonging to 
the farm. 

Manual training and the farm boy. — A farmer boy's 
education has no more important part than training in the 
use of farm tools and the application of the ordinary me- 
chanical work needed about barns, fences and machines. 
This phase of training should be correlated with the man- 
ual-training courses in the public school. The manual 
training learned by the farmer boy should relate to farm 
needs. Every farmer boy should master the practical prin- 
ciples of painting, the mixing and use of paint, and the 
relation of color schemes. For the use of paint not only 
beautifies, but conserves buildings, fences and machinery. 

The use of cement. — Cement has come to be one of 




A modern type of cow pen. 




A deep tilling plow, with two disks. 



412 AGRICULTURE 

the most important economies of a farm homestead. Every 
boy will want to know something about the making of con- 
crete, and the proper methods of mixing and surfacing. He 
should understand the making of molds, the laying of foun- 
dations for cement structure, and the application of cement 
to the construction of silos, water-tanks, fence posts, 
bridges, feeding floors, etc. 

3. Rope Tying and Splicing 

One of the elementary yet rribst interesting divisions of 
farm mechanics is rope tying and splicing. The place of 
the rope in farm management is very much the same as the 
relation of the nail to the builder. Ropes are also widely 
used in other occupations, and the lives of many workmen 
often depend on the strength of a rope or the security of a 
knot. 

The uses o£ ropes. — Long before farm machinery was 
invented or useful implements projected, rope tying and 
splicing bore a very important relation to the work of agri- 
culture. The first harness was made of rope. Joints and 
splicings were made with rope long before the day of bolts, 
rivets, and other metal devices for the joining of parts in 
farm machinery. In spite of the fact that we have to-day 
all manner of improved farm machinery we still need the 
convenience and economy made possible by the use of the 
rope. 

Some knots useful on the farm. — Some of the prac- 
tical rope knots are as follows : the clove-hitch ; bowline ; 
never-slip noose ; slipknot ; Beckett hitch ; reef-knot, or 
square knot, which never slips but is always easily untied ; 
the two half-hitches often used for the halter-hitch ; weav- 
er's knot for the joining of small cords; fixed knot; anchor 
bend; timber-hitch, which can be easily untied but never 
slips ; and the carrick-bend for joining ropes. 




Lc-^.i, I.:..! l-u:c: «i. 



\c;,.in l.-;c.l taJ.ia 



Some useful knots. Learu to identify and tie. 



414 



AGRICULTURE 



Making the right knot. — Different knots are required 
for different purposes. A simple knot that will serve in 
one use is not adapted to another; knots that will untie 




Kg 5*'.— nuln Kaa: 



li^ 



More knots. 

under certain conditions may be impossible to untie under 
other conditions.^ 



1. A most interesting little book on rope knotting and 
splicing is one published by David McKay, Philadelphia. SO 
cents. A number of the drawings here shown are taken by per- 
mission of the ompany from this set. 




still more knots. 



28 



416 AGRICULTURE 

Principles of knot tying. — Certain principles apply to 
the tying of all knots. The efficiency of the knot does 
not depend on the number of turns or hitches, but on the 
position of the "nip." The bend or hitch must be so formed 
that the part of the rope tmder strain nips securely some 
portion of the knot, either against itself or the object to 
which it is attached. The nip of each different knot should 
be studied. 

Rope materials. — While a large part of our rope and 
cordage is made of hemp, many other materials are now 
coming to enter into their manufacture. The coil rope is 
made from cocoanut fiber, which is used because it is so 
light and pliable. This rope is useful for warps, rocket 
lines, life-buoy lines, nets, etc. Manila grass is adapted to 
the construction of coarse ropes and hawsers requiring 
great strength and hard wear, and where tar can not be used 
on the rope. 

Strips of hides are used for ropes where great st/ ength 
and pliability with small diameter are needed. Cotton is 
employed for ropes and cordage used for fancy work of 
all kinds. Wire is used for rope making whenever very 
great strength is needed, as in connection with dredging 
machinery, suspension bridge cables and the like. 

Rope making. — Yartis are formed by twisting the 
hemp right-handed, while the "strands" are made by twist- 
ing or laying up the yarns left-handed, and the rope by 
laying it up in strands right-handed. Three small ropes 
laid up left-handed form a cable-laid rope. Four-stranded 
ropes are laid round a heart. In using hemp for rope mak- 
ing, great care should be exercised not to twist the hemp 
more than necessary, as this weakens the rope. A three- 
stranded rope will bear a greater strain in comparison to its 
size than any other rope of the same material. This ac- 



FARM IMPLEMENTS AND MECHANICS 417 

counts for the fact that most of our rope is made of three 
strands. Cable-laid and four-stranded ropes are as a rule 
about one-fifth weaker. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a list of all your farm machinery and esti- 
mate the value. Talk with your father and determine the 
annual expense of this machinery in deterioration and inter- 
est on the investment. How is your machinery housed? Is 
it kept in good repair? 

2. Make a similar list of all your shop tools. Have you 
all that are needed for the up-keep of your farm buildings 
and machinery? 

3. Make a list of all the knots you have ever seen used 
on the farm. Tie all these knots. What other knots would 
be serviceable? Learn to tie other useful knots from the 
pictures shown in this chapter, 

4. If you wanted to draw a plank from the ground up 
to the gable window of a barn by use of a rope, what knot 
-sTould you use? Think of several other such uses for knots 
and show the knots to be employed. 

5. Make a rope halter for a horse or calf. Show how 
to tip a halter rope. 

6. Locate on a map of the world the places where 
the different rope materials are produced. Make a collec- 
tion of all the different kinds of rope available, and tell of 
what they are made. 

4. Rope Play Contests 

1. Knot naming contest. 

2. Rope judging contest. 

3. Knot tying and splicing contest, to see who can tie 
and name accurately the largest number of rope knots in a 
period of ten minutes. Contest to be judged on skill, ac- 
curacy and number of knots tied. 

4. Rope spelling contest, to be conducted from the list 



418 



AGRICULTURE 



of words used in connection with rope, cordage and splic- 
ing work, with the object of making pupils familiar with 
the terms. 



5. Knot drawing contest. 



5. Rope Club Projects 

It is possible to organize a group of boys into a rope 
dub with a view to the mastery of rope tying, splicing, 




Rope tying contest: 36 knots tied, named and untied in 6 
minutes. 

cordage work, etc. The requirements should be to study 
in connection with geography the various fibers used, such 
as hemp, cotton and cocoanut. The method of production of 
the plants, a study of uses of rope, and their practical appli- 
cation to farm and home mechanics should be taken up. The 
basis of award of a club project of this sort may be as 
follows : 

1. Knowledge of origin, development and methods of manu- 
facture in the rope industry 1 20 



FARM IMPLEMENTS AND MECHANICS 419 

2. Ability to name and tell the use of knots and splicings 20 

3. Exhibit of knots and splicings named and mounted on 

board. (Use quarter-inch rope.) 20 

4. Skill shown by actual test in the tying and naming of 

rope knots 20 

5. Written story of "Rope Tying and Splicing as Related to 

Farm Mechanics" 20 

Total score —100 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

ROAD BUILDING AND MAINTENANCE 

I "VOOD public roads are a prime necessity to successful 
V^ agriculture and rural development. They add to the 
pleasure, profit and convenience of the farm. 

1. Importance of Public Roads 

There are in the United States about two million two 
humlred thousand miles of roads. Of this immense stretch 
of piiblic highway, two million miles are classed as earth 
roads. This is to say that we have enough earth roads to 
circle the globe eighty times at the equator. 

Good roads and prosperity. — A study of history 
shows that every great and prosperous nation has built a 
good system of public roads, while primitive and unpro- 
gressive peoples are satisfied with poor roads. In our 
own country we find the most prosperous and progressive 
communities are those that are giving attention to their 
roads. 

Neetl for good roads. — Because good roads allow the 
farmer to haul his produce to market at a minimum of ex- 
pense in time and energy, he can make more profit out of 
his crops and stock. And the prosperity of the farmer 
tends to increase the prosperity of all business men and 
lower the cost of living to consumers. The success of the 
rural schools also depends much on improved roads. Es- 
pecially is this true where the schools are being consoli- 
dated and the pupils transported to the school by the dis- 

420 




Au earth road tliat needs imnrovii 





The same road improved. 



422 AGRICULTURE 

trict. Rural mail delivery and the extension of the parceJ- 
■ post system further demand the improvement of country 
roads. And, not least important, the making of country 
life interesting and attractive rests in no small degree on 
good roads, for they allow rural people easily to travel about 
the community for social or business purposes. 

Growing movement for good roads. — In nearly every 
part of the United States there is at present a growing 
interest in good roads. New laws are being passed and 
millions of money appropriated to improve our roads. Com- 
mercial clubs, business concerns and other organizations are 
working together to encourage road building. And farm- 
ers are coming to demand improved roads for teaming and 
automobiles. 

2. Types of Roads 

Roads are generally considered under the following 
types: (1) earth roads, (2) sand clay roads, (3) gravel 
roads, (4) macadam roads, (5) bituminous macadam roads, 
(6) brick roads, and (7) concrete roads. The discussion 
in this chapter will be confined to the earth roads, since 
these are the most necessary and practical study for the 
public schools. 

Earth roads. — A chain is no stronger than its weak- 
est link; so, also, a road is no better than its poorest part. 
This means that the heaviest load that can be drawn over 
a public highway is the load that can be drawn up the 
steepest hill, through the worst ruts or mud-holes, or over 
the deepest stretch of sand. Hence the importance of low- 
ering or going around the hill, and eliminating the mud- 
holes, ruts and stretches of sand. 

3. The Location of a Road 

Public roads should, as far as possible, be located in 
straight lines. In hilly or mountainous regions, however, 




Cross Sec+ion French Roacf (Roman Meihod), 
previous to I77S.- 



mimimmmikij 



Cross Section of7resao0Kj&f Road^ mS. 



•r. -y rv.tf r . r v 



Cro&s. SectiQn Telford Road 1820 



Cross Section Macadam Road, IBIG, 



CroiS Section of Modern Macadam fi4cissachusefts) Rbcd 
with l^sf>oped foundatior}. 



Cross Section of Modern Mocodom Rood. 



Cross-sections of different types of roads. 



424 



AGRICULTURE 



this rule must often give way to avoid the climbing of too 
heavy grades. 

Straightness and grade. — To lift a ton one foot high 
requires two thousand foot-tons of energy. On a road sur- 
face requiring one hundred pounds traction per ton, the 
same energy would roll the ton a horizontal distance of 
twenty feet. As far as the actual amount of energy used is 
concerned, therefore, to save one foot of grade, or up-hill 




Eartli road iu Kansas. 

climb, the road may be lengthened twenty feet. Public 
road grades should avoid a rise of more than six feet in a 
distance of one hundred feet. The hills should be cut down 
and the material used to fill in the hollows or else the road 
relocated to go around the hill and to avoid the steep grades. 
The necessity oi sunlight. — Every road bed should 
have at least six hours of sunlight each day. Brush, trees 
or hedges that interfere with this requirement should be 
cleared away or sufficiently thinned out. On the other hand, 



ROAD BUILDING AND MAINTENANCE 425 

suitable trees, shrubbery, grass, vines and flowers should 
be encouraged along the roadway, as they add both to the 
beauty of the road and the value of farms. 

Drainage. — As a rule the only ditches needed for the 
proper drainage of the road can be made by the road grader. 
Deeper ditches are necessary where the adjoining land is 
low and level. In the building of culverts care should be 
taken to make them large enough to handle the overflow. 
The}' must also be sufficiently durable to resist the spring 




Concrete road near Detroit. 

freshets and not be injured by the maximum flow caused 
by storm water. They should have sufficient slope so that 
the wash will keep them clean. All the spillways should 
be paved, if necessary, and the outlet and inlet protected 
by suitable head and wing walls. 

4. The Construction of Earth Roads 

Shaping the road bed. — Earth roads should not be 
made too wide. Twenty-four to thirty feet is sufficient un- 
less the road is to be macadamized or otherwise permanently 



426 AGRICULTURE 

improved. All roads should be properly crowned or 
rounded in order to aid them in disposing quickly of sur- 
face water. An earth road twenty-four feet wide should 
not be less than six inches nor more than twelve inches 
higher at the center than at each of the borders. The total 
fall from center to side should be about an inch to the foot. 
The work of construction. — ^The earth roads can best 
be crowned and ditched by a reversible road grader. The 
use of picks, shovels, scoops and plows should be avoided. 
One road machine with sufficient power and a good opera- 
tor will do the work of a large number of men and do it 
much better. Graders as a rule should be used when the 
soil is damp. This will make the soil pack well while dry- 
ing. If it is worked when dry and hard it takes more power 
to draw the machine and in addition the dry earth and dust 
will absorb and retain moisture and soon develop ruts. All 
clods, sod, weeds and vegetable matter should be removed. 

5. Maintenance of Earth Roads 

Necessity of constant care. — The greatest problem of 
earth road building is that of maintenance, and any earth 
road which carries a great deal of traffic requires almost 
constant attention. Repairs should be made when needed. 
A few days spent upon the road at different times through- 
out the year will accomplish a great deal. It is a serious 
mistake to devote all of the time in road building to a par- 
ticular season, leaving the road without care the remainder 
of the year. Most communities need a few men and teams 
spending their entire time in keeping roads in repair. 

Dragging earth roads. — One of the most useful de- 
vices for the maintenance of public earth roads is the split- 
log drag. This works with great efficiency on both earth 
and gravel roads. To obtain the best results the roads 



ROAD BUILDING AND MAINTENANCE 427 

should be dragged once each way after every heavy rain. 
This must be done while the soil is moist but not sticky. 

It is not necessary to employ the direct supervision of 
skilled engineers for the maintenance and repair of earth 
and gravel roads, providing the rules and suggestions they 
lay down are carefully and intelligently followed. A dif- 




Tlie split-log drag at work on an Iowa road. 

ficult piece of construction or fixing of grades should, how- 
ever, always be carried out under the supervision of an 
expert. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. What is the prevailing type of road in your local- 
ity? How many miles of public roads in your school dis- 
trict? In your county? 

2. What roads do you know which climb steep hills i* 
Can you devise a method by which you can measure the 



428 AGRICULTURE 

grade of the incline, and find how many feet risft to each 

one hundred feet? 

3. How many split-log drags in your school district? 
What road machinery is owned by the township or road 
district ? 

4. Under what management is the care of roads in 
your locality? Name the road officials of your district 
and county. Give a statement of the road laws of your 
state. 

5. What different materials are used in constructing 
bridges, culverts and road drainage systems in your local- 
ity ? Which seems to be the most satisfactory ? 

6. Do any transcontinental or state highways pass 
through your state? If so, locate them on a state map 
and name them. 

7. For whom was the macadam road named ? Describe 
how such a road is built. 

8. Look up the story of each of the following men and 
learn what he did to help the cause of good roads : Pierre- 
Marie Fresaguet, J. L. Mac Adam, Thomas Til ford, Eli 
Whitney Blake. 

6. Demonstrations 

Many of the demonstrations should be conducted out on 
the public highway and when possible under the supervi- 
sion or direction of the road supervisor, commissioner or 
expert. 

L Demonstrate how to make a split-log drag, either 
full size or miniature. 

2. Demonstrate by means of drawing, paper or wood 
construction, the various types of drainage used in road 
building. 

3. Show how properly to crown a road. 

4. Demonstrate how to repair a rut in a permanent 
roadway. 

5. Demonstrate by drawing a roadway showing cor- 
rect perspective, crowning:, drainage, etc. 




A good ruacadam road. 




Bituminous macadam road iu New Jersey. 



430 AGRICULTURE 

7. Road Play Contests 

1. Road dragging contest. 

2. Split-log drag making contest. 

3. Road drawing contest. 

4. Essay writing contest on subjects relating to roads. 

5. Spelling and drawing contests, as related to the 
v^rords and interests of road work. 




A concrete bridge. This type of structure should replace the 
old wooden bridge. 

8. Road Club Projects 

Permanent road building as a rule is not the work of 
boys and girls. But the building, maintenance and repair 
of common earth and gravel roads is quite within the reach 
of the boys ranging in age from twelve to nineteen. Two 
different road projects are suited to club work. 

One project is known as the "School Road Dragging 
Club," in which the pupils, under the leadership of the 
teacher and with the advice of the road ofificer, take charge 
of one mile of public highway near the schoolhouse, keep- 
ing it well dragged and in repair for the season. A second 
project permits individual pupils to take charge of one mile 
of road in front of the homestead, keeping it carefully 
dragged and in good repair during the summer. 



ROAD BUILDING AND MAINTENANCE 431 

Awards. — The basis of award in either of these club 
projects may be as follows : 

1. General improvement in road during period of club pro- 

ject, based upon trueness, alignment, regularity and 
clearness of ditches, amount and shape of crown, bet- 
terment of surface and drainage 15 

2. General condition of improved section at end of club 

project period with reference to clearness of ditches, 
waterways, trueness, and shape of borders, freedom 
from ruts and depressions, smoothness, compactness, 
regularity of width IS 

3. Economy of methods used, based on ten cents per hour 

for time of horse, and ten cents per hour for member 15 

4. Written report and story of "The Road Work of the Sea- 

son" 15 

5. Faithfulness of maintenance during club project period 

with reference to freedom of flow in ditches and 
waterways, repair of borders and washes, rapidity of 
drying out and hardening after rains, and the regular- 
ity and systematic use of the split-log drag 40 

Total score 100 

The authors are indebted to Mr. Maurice O. Eldridge, of 
the office of Good Roads, Washington, D. C, for able assistance 
in the preparation of this chapter, and to the ofifice of Public 
Roads for photographs used. 



« 



CHAPTER XXIX 
BIRDS AND OTHER INSECT DESTROYERS 

THE farmer is greatly assisted in his war against the 
insects that prey on crops, orchards and gardens by birds 
and other creatures that use these pests for food. Every 
farm boy and girl should learn the most useful of these 
small friends and protect them in every way. 

1. Birds and Their Food 

Whether certain birds are helpful or harmful to the 
farmer depends almost wholly on what the bird eats. If 
its diet consists chiefly of farm grains and domestic fruits, 
or if the bird kills other useful birds, it is an enemy ; if, 
on the other hand, its food is made up mainly of harmful 
bugs, beetles, grasshoppers, caterpillars and worms, it should 
be counted as a friend. It is also to be remembered that 
many birds that eat grain or fruit as a part of their diet 
may kill enough noxious insects in return to pay far more 
than for damage they do. Besides devouring insects, many 
species of birds eat immense quantities of weed seed, thus 
reducing the weed crop of the next season. 

Food of some common birds. — The United States 
Department of Agriculture has examined the stomachs of 
many birds to determine the nature of their food, and thus 
discover their relation to agriculture: 

The quail or bobwhite eats weed seed, potato beetles, 
squash beetles, the boll-weevil, chinch-bug, grasshoppers, 
cutworms, etc. 

432 




_A favorite food of the birds. 



434 AGRICULTURE 

Mourning doves live principally on weed seed, with a 
small proportion of waste grain. 

Cuckoos live chiefly on caterpillars, grasshoppers, 
beetles, moths and other harmful insects. 

The red-headed woodpecker makes three-quarters of his 
diet consist of harmful insects, and most of the rest of 
weed seed and wild fruit. 

The night hazvk is especially fond of flying ants, but also 
eats grasshoppers, beetles and bugs. 

Bank swallows and ham szvallozvs live almost entirely 
on flies, various species of flying beetles, ants and weevils, 

The grosbeaks are among the most useful of our birds. 
They are particularly fond of potato beetles, and have done 
much to rid the farmers of this pest. They also eat other 
harmful insects. 

The barn ozd lives principally on mice, rats and rab- 
bits. While he captures an occasional chicken, he does far 
more good than harm and should be protected. 

The crow is usually looked upon as a thief and a rob- 
ber. There is no doubt that the crow does pull up young 
corn, rob birds' nests and occasionally kill chickens. Yet 
the crow is so fond of beetles, grasshoppers, bugs and other 
crop enemies that his virtues exceed his vices and he should 
be counted as a friend. 

Other useful birds. — It will not be necessary to ex- 
tend this list, which might be made to include scores of 
birds that join with the farmer in his efforts to rid the 
crops of insect pests. Among the many species that should 
be encouraged and protected are : meadowlark, house wren, 
song sparrow, oriole, scissor-tail fly catcher, mocking-bird, 
blue jay, red-winged blackbird, cardinal, red-headed wood- 
pecker, killdeer, screech owl, robin, bluebird, snow bird, 
warbler, kinglet. In general, the birds are the farmer's 
friends and deserve his good will. 




J 



IHe liairy uud dowuy woodpeckers. 




Tbe ui(>;idii\vl;irk. 



BIRDS AND OTHER INSECT DESTROYERS 437 

Harmful birds. — A few species of birds do much more 
harm than good and therefore do not merit protection. 

The English sparrozv has been declared a pest and should 
be exterminated. While in some regions it eats a certain 
proportion of weed seed and harmful insects, on the whole 
its diet consists of orchard fruits, young garden vegetables 
and field grains, especially wheat. It also eats the eggs 
and attacks the young of a score of useful birds, thus re- 
ducing their number. Campaigns of extermination have 
been waged against the English sparrow in various parts of 
the country. 

The house finch and the sapsucker also do sufficient dam- 
age that they have no claim to the farmer's good will or 
protection. 

2. Other Enemies of Harmful Insects and Animals 

Besides birds a number of other creatures, most of them 
so lowly as all but to escape observation, are good friends 
of the farmer. 

The toad. — The common ugly toad, which we often 
either avoid or kick out of our path, deserves better treat- 
ment. Its food consists of flies, caterpillars, cutworms, 
June-bugs and other harmful insects. 

The horned lizard fancies almost the same bill of fare 
and joins with the toad to protect our gardens. 

Snakes. — The small snakes common to most regions 
are entirely harmless, and live on our enemies, such as 
mice, various beetles and weevils. It is therefore a mis- 
take to kill them. 

3. Protecting Our Friends 

Boys and girls should make a study of the life and 
habits of the humble friends who do their best to rid our 
fields and gardens pf their enemies, and should always en- 
courage and protect them. 




The yellow-bellied sapsucker. 



BIRDS AND OTHER INSECT DESTROYERS 439 

Attracting the birds. — Bird houses consisting of small 
boxes roofed over, cans open at one end, or other suitable 
receptacles placed in trees or on posts in secluded places 
will do much to attract certain birds. When deep snow 
covers the ground in winter, hiding the seeds and other 
food, it will pay well to scatter a little grain each day 
where the non-miefratingf birds will find it. 




English sparrows, male and female. 



How to treat a friend. — Bird hunting should not be 
with a gun, but with a camera, field glass or alert eyes for 
the purpose of becoming acquainted with our feathered 
friends. Birds' nests should never be disturbed, the eggs 
handled or the young worried during nesting time. The 
fashion which decorates hats with the plumage of birds. 



440 AGRICULTURE 

thus requiring their destruction, should be severely con- 
demned. We should even come to look upon toads, lizards, 
snakes and frogs as our friends and treat them well. 

Topics for Investigation 

1. Make a list of the birds you are able to identify at 
sight. Do you know the nesting habits of each of these? 

2. Make a list of all the birds' eggs you are able to 
identify. Dp you know the hatching time of each ? 

3. Secure a copy of Farmers' Bulletins Nos. 54 and 
506, and make a table of the food of each of the common 
birds of your locality. 

4. What birds remain over winter in your region? 
What ones migrate and where do they go ? 

5. Watch for toads, lizards and snakes and observe 
their feeding habits. 

6. Keep a lookout for birds you do not recognize, and 
find out their names and habits. 



CHAPTER XXX 
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION 

1. How to Remove Stains 

Iron rust. — Apply salt and lemon juice to the damp- 
ened spots. Place in the sun or near the fire. Then rinse 
or wash thoroughly. 

Fruit stains. — Pour over stained cloth, boiling v.^ater, 
letting it fall a distance of four or five feet, or wring article 
out of cold water and leave out-of-doors over a cold night. 

Blood stains. — All fresh blood stains can be easily 
rubbed out after soaking in cold or tepid water. After 
the blood has been dried, use javelle water or peroxide of 
hydrogen. Kerosene is sometimes used with success. 

Paint spots. — Use equal parts of ammonia and turpen- 
tine. Wash or rub until clean. 

Grass stains. — Remove grass stains by the use of 
alcohol, naphtha soap, or ammonia and water. 

Ink. — The commercial ink eradicator will remove ink 
stains from all white goods. If used on colored goods it 
will probably bleach or remove color. Another practical 
recipe is to wet the spot with warm water and sapolio, rub 
or polish between the hands, wash in a solution of hydro- 
chloric acid and rinse in ammonia water. 

Mildew. — Mix equal parts of soap and starch, half 
as much common salt, and juice of half a lemon. Spread 
over the spots and lay garment upon the grass until the 
stain disappears. 

Perspiration. — Soak in cold water, wash with borax 
and spread garment to dry in sunlight. Under-arm stains 

441 



442 AGRICULTURE 

usually require an acid such as a weak solution of muriatic 
acid. 

Burned cooking utensils. — To clean granite ware 
where mixtures have been burned on the surface, fill con- 
tainer half full of water, add good soap, washing powder, 
or baking soda. Bring water to a boiling point and scrub 
with a small brush. 

Tea, coffee or cocoa. — Wash with cold water, pour 
glycerine over spots and let stand for a few hours. Then 
wash with cold water and hard soap. If stains are fresh, 
pour over the stains boiling water from a height of four or 
five feet, after soaking. 

Tar or wagon grease. — Use cold soap-suds. 

Pit stains. — Grease with lard before using soap and 
water. Turpentine will usually remove the stains if other 
remedies fail. 

2. Location of Colleges of Agriculture, Extension Depart- 
ments and Experiment Stations 

Letters addressed to any of these institutions, request- 
ing information on agriculture or home economics subjects 
will be answered with courtesy. Help will be rendered or 
farm bulletins supplied when possible. 



MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION 443 



„„,__ College of Extension Experiment 

STATE Agriculture Department Station 

Alabama Auburn i Auburn Auburn 

Uniontown (Sul». ' 
Tuskegee (negro) 

Arizona Tucson Tucson Tucson 

Arkansas Fayetteville Fayetteville Fayetteville 

California Berkeley Berkeley Berkeley 

Colorado Fort Collins Fort Collins Fort Collins 

Connecticut Storrs Storrs Storrs 

New Haven 

Delaware Newark Newark Newark 

Florida Gainesville Gainesville Gainesville 

Georgia Athens Athens Experiment 

Hawaii Honolulu Honolulu Honolulu 

Idaho Moscow Boise Moscow 

Illinois tirbana Urbana Urbana 

Indiana Lafayette Lafayette Lafayetto 

Iowa Ames Ames Ames 

Kansas Manhattan Manhattan Manhattan 

Kentucky - Lexington Lexington Lexington 

Louisiana Baton Rouge Baton Rouge Baton Rouge 

New Orleans New Orleans Auburn Park (brch.) 

Calhoun (branch) 
Crowley (branch) 

Maine Orono Orono Orono 

Maryland College Park College Park College Park 

Massachusetts , Amherst Amherst Amherst 

Michigan East Lansing East Lansing East Lansing 

Minnesota St. Paul Sc. Paul gt p^ui 

Mississippi Agric. College Agric. College Agric. College 

Missouri-- Columbia Columbia Columbia 

Montana Bozeman Bozeman Bozeman 

Nebraska Lincoln . Lincoln Lincoln 

Nevada Reno Reno ^^^^ 

New Hampshire Durham Durham Durham 

New Jersey New Brunswick--. New Brunswick jje^ Brunswick 

New Mexico State College State College State College 

New York Ithaca Ithaca Ithaca 

Geneva 

North Carolina West Raleigh West Raleigh West Raleigh 

North Dakota Agric. College Agric. College Agric. College 

Ohio Columbus Columbus Wooster 

Oklahoma Stillwater Stillwater Stillwater 

Oregon Corvallis Corvallis Corvallis 

Pennsylvania State College State College State College 

Porto Rico Mayaguez Mayaguez Mayaguez 

Rio Pledras (Sub.) 

Soutli Caroline Clcmson College Clemson College Clemson College 

South Dakota Brookings Brookings Brookings 

Tennessee Knoxvlllp Knoxville Kno.^ville 

Texas College Station College Station.... College Station 

Utah Logan Logan liOgan 

Vermont Burlington Burlington Burlington 

Virginia Blacksburg Blacksburg Blacksburg 

Hampton Hampton (negro) _ Norfolk (branch) 

Washington Pullman Pullman Pullman 

West Virginia Morgantown Morgantown Morgantown 

Wisconsin Madison Madison Madison 

Wyoming._ _ Laramie Laramie Laramie 



444 



AGRICULTURE 



3. Distances Apart for Planting Fruits and Vegetables 



Feet 

Apples 30.0-40.0 

Apricots 15.0-20.0 

Cherries 15.0-25.0 

Oranges 25.0-30.0 

Peaches 15.0-20.0 

Pears 20.0-30.0 

Plums __i 15.0-20.0 

Quinces 10.0-12.0 

Blackberries 4.5- 7.0 

Currants 4.0- 4.5 

Raspberries 3.5- 5.0 

Strawberries 1.0- 4.0 

Asparagus 2.0- 4.0 

Beans, bush and pole 1.0- 4.0 
Beets .5- 2.0 



Feet 

Cabbage 2.0- 3.0 

Carrot .5- 2.0 

Corn, sweet 3.0- 3.5 

Celery 3.0- 4.0 

Lettuce .5- 2.0 

Onion 1.5- 2.0 

Parsley 1.0- 2.0 

Peas 1.0- 3.0 

Potato 2.5- 3.0 

Radish 1.0- 1.5 

Salsify .5- 2.0 

Squash and pumpkin 6.0- 8.0 

Turnip .5- 2.0 

Tomato 3.0- 4.0 



4. Quantity of Seed per Acre and Legal Weights 
per Bushel 

Seed Weight 

per acre per bu. 

Alfalfa 30 lbs. 60 lbs. 

Barley 8 to 10 pks. 48 lbs.* 

Blue-grass 20 to 25 lbs. 14 lbs. 

Buckwheat 3 to 5 pks. 48 lbs.* 

Clover 10 to 15 lbs. 60 lbs.* 

Corn, shelled, check row 6 to 8 qts. 60 lbs. 

Corn, ensilage 10 qts. 

Cotton, upland 4 to 8 pks. 32 lbs.* 

Cow-pea 4 to 7 pks. 60 lbs. 

Oats 2 to 3 bu. 32 lbs. 

Potato 6 to 18 bu. 60 lbs.* 

Rye 3 to 8 pks. 56 lbs.=" 

Timothy 10 to 20 lbs. 45 lbs.* 

Wheat 6 to 9 pks. 60 lbs. 



*Varies in a few states. 

THE END 



TO THE TEACHER 



TO THE TEACHER 



1. The Point of View 

SUCCESSFUL teaching of agriculture, more than that of 
any other subject, depends on the spirit and metliods of 
the teacher. Agriculture is so thoroughly concrete a subject 
that only a small part of it can be effectively taught by text- 
book and in class room without the assistance of field and 
farm. The teacher of agriculture must remember first of 
all that there is no real agriculture in the text-book. 

The place of the text. — Real agriculture is out in the 
fields, gardens and pastures, and among the herds and 
flocks of the farm. The text-book can only serve as a 
guide to point the way, showing the pupil what to look for, 
and teaching him to understand what he finds as he meets 
the problems of preparing the soil, planting and tilling the 
crop, or feeding and caring for the stock. Agriculture can 
therefore not be taught from the text alone, no matter how 
complete or well arranged it may be, nor how generous the 
illustrations. The text-book is very important in class 
room and laboratory, but it must be supplemented by the 
immediate interests of the farm. 

2. Public School Extension Work 

This point of view suggests a method for connecting the 
work of the school with the home. The children should 
actually do the things they study about. For a number of 
years the colleges of agriculture have been engaging in 



ii TO THE TEACHER 

various forms of extension work, with a view to oftenng 
the services of the educational institution to those who can 
not go to college. The time has come when the public 
school should also offer some such form of extension serv- 
ice reaching the homes of its patrons. 

Plans for extension projects. — Agricultural extension 
work can be carried out by the public schools according to 
two dififerent plans: (1) the setting of certain definite 
home or farm "projects," or specific pieces of work, to be 
carried out by the individual pupils as a part of the course 
in agriculture ; or (2) the organization of agricultural 
clubs, which provide for group, or coordinated, work of 
specified nature, usually in conjunction with state or national 
club organizations. In either case a certain amount of 
school credit should be allowed for home and club work 
satisfactorily done. 

Agricultural club projects. — The United States De- 
partment of Agriculture has undertaken the organization of 
boys' and girls' clubs in every state in the Union, and, 
\vherever possible, works in connection with the public 
schools. Government experts, state club managers, county 
agricultural agents and the state agricultural colleges all 
stand ready to help organize, promote and direct these 
clubs. 

The teacher of agriculture will find the club a great 
incentive to pupils, and an invaluable adjunct to text-book 
and class-room work. Through the club it is possible to 
translate book and laboratory information into real action 
in the field, with the herds, and in the home. Agricultural 
clwb work will also do much to bridge the gap that has so 
long existed between the home and the school. 

The number of club projects. — The club idea must 
not, however, be overdone. It is possible to start so many 
projects that none of them can be well supervised or sue- 



TO THE TEACHER iii 

cessfully carried out. Probably no school should encour- 
age the formation of more than two different club projects 
for the same season. Club work is outlined with almost 
every chapter in this text, but not with the expectation that 
any school will organize at one time all the clubs suggested. 
The teacher, with the cooperation of county, state or 
national agricultural club leaders, should select for boys 
the project of greatest agricultural significance and value 
to the community, and for the girls the project of greatest 
economic and social value to the community home life. 
Every rural school, especially, should have two such club 
projects. This plan will carry the benefits of the school to 
the homes, and offer the boys and girls real interests in 
agriculture and home economics not only for the school 
year, but for the summer vacation as well. 

3. Equipment for Teaching Agriculture 

The amount and nature of the equipment required for 
the teaching of agriculture will depend largely on the time 
allotted to the study, the age and grade of the pupils, and 
the scope of the work undertaken. But every school, no 
matter how small or elementary, must have certain neces- 
sary equipment if the work is to be most successful. Much 
of this material can be made by the pupils in the school, if 
they are properly directed. 

Tables and cabinets. — It is essential to have suitable 
table space so as to permit study or demonstration in a 
group. This will be much more satisfactory than under- 
taking to do the work from the individual desks of the 
pupils. For successful class work the pupils should always 
be seated together for observation and instruction, and 
there must be room for the display and distribution of ma- 
terial to be used by the entire class. Adequate cupboard or 
cabinet space for the storing of material and specimens is 



iv TO THE TEACHER 

important. These may be separate pieces, or built penna- 
nently in or against the wall. They should be mouse-proof, 
otherwise the specimens are likely to be destroyed. The 
upper section of the cabinet may be of glass and the lower 
doors of wood. The doors should be locked throughout the 
night and the vacation periods. 

4. Individual Equipment 

A few pieces of litmus paper. 

Small glass vials for the selection of weed seeds and 
samples of soil. 

Two pieces of quarter-inch hemp rope for use in the 
study of the relation of the rope to agriculture. 

A few blotter testers, a rag-doll tester, and at home, a 
box seed-corn tester. 

Seed racks and seed trays used for drying and exhib- 
iting purposes. 

A small thermometer for the testing of temperatures of 
water, soil, etc. 

A few simple garden tools like hoes, rakes, small hand 
spades, potato fork, etc. Most of the garden tools can, of 
course, be supplied from the home to be used both at home 
and at school. 

Some simple carpenter tools for use in the making of 
model hen houses, feed and watering troughs, single-trees, 
seed boxes, cold-frames, etc. 

5. General Equipment for the School 

Seed trays, seed-testing equipment, soil capillarity tubes, 
a set of large-mouthed bottles for exhibits of types of soil, 
a similar set for exhibits of seeds, a Babcock milk tester, 
canning equipment, a few miniature models of farm machin- 
ery. When room has been provided and funds are available 



TO THE TEACHER v 

regular farm machinery, cream separators, fanning mills, 
etc., will be of great value in the teaching of the various 
subjects of agriculture. 

6. Laboratory Material 

A great deal of the material for instruction can be ob- 
tained as needed from the homes, and adjoining farms and 
fields. It is not possible, however, to make the course in 
agriculture follow the seasons exactly, and some material 
therefore needs to be stored for class use. Other material 
may not be easily found when required. Samples of still 
other products may not be available in the region, and 
should be kept for comparison. 

Samples of soils. — Samples of all the different va- 
rieties of soils to be found in the region should be collected 
and kept in laboratory bottles, jars or common fruit jars. 
These samples should include soils rich in humus, clays, 
sands, lava, and soils in which organic matter is lacking. 
Each sample should be labeled, telling the type represented 
and where obtained. 

Specimens of cereal plants and grains. — Samples of 
all the common cereal grains, including the different local 
varieties, should be collected and stored in wide-mouthed 
bottles. These will serve for comparison with samples 
brought by the pupils from their farm crops. Specimens 
of the cereal plants should also be collected and stored 
when the crop is ripening. This will allow the class to 
study the different types and varieties of wheat, oats, etc., 
and to identify each from the plant, even if the study can 
not be taken up when the crops are available in the fields. 
It is also desirable to make a collection of types or varieties 
not common to the region and use them for comparison. 
The state agricultural college can usually help in securing 
such a collection. 



vi TO THE TEACHER 

Specimens of grasses and legumes. — A complete col- 
lection of the native grasses and legumes should be made 
in every school. The pupils will delight in helping in this 
work, which may be made one of the most valuable parts 
of their instruction. Wherever possible the roots should 
be saved with the stem, so that the entire plant will be 
represented. The specimens should be clearly labeled and 
tied in bunches or attached to pieces of cardboard. It is 
not intended that these dried samples shall be used for study 
instead of the growing plant, but they are often useful for 
occasional illustration when there is no time to collect the 
new material. They also serve as a standard for identifica- 
tion of specimens brought by the pupils to the school. The 
list should include the chief varieties grown in other sec- 
tions of the country. 

Specimens of weeds. — A collection of the noxious 
weeds of the region should be made and labels attached. 
Here again the class may be used in making the collection 
of all specimens that are available at the time school is in 
session or even during vacation. A collection of weed 
seeds should be saved in bottles like those used for the 
cereals. Pupils should become able to identify at sight 
both the weed plant and its seed, and should know the 
habits of growth, the injury done crops and the method of 
eradication. 

Specimens of injurious insects and worms. — The in- 
sect pests common to the region should be collected and 
preserved for study by attaching them to cardboard by 
means of laboratory pins or other device. The school 
should have a cyanide insect bottle for killing specimens, 
and insect cases for preserving them. Each specimen 
should be clearly labeled and the time of its appearance and 
disappearance given. These specimens will then serve as 
a guide for the class in making their own collection, or 



TO THE TEACHER vil 

identifying the insects at work. The proper place to study 
insects is, of course, in the field in connection with the soil 
and plant life whenever they are available. 

Specimens of woods. — A collection of native woods 
is one of the most interesting and easy to make. Every 
pupil will be glad to take part in the work. Samples of 
the leaves should also be collected and preserved. Such a 
collection will supply the basis for a study of trees, and 
should result in each pupil being able to identify native 
trees at sight, either by their leaves or wood and habits of 
growth. Pupils should not be permitted to destroy useful 
plants for the sake of school specimens. 

7. Method of Instruction 

It is not possible or desirable in this place to give de- 
tailed discussion as to the methods of teaching agriculture. 
Certain broad and fundamental principles may, however, 
be stated. 

Seeking knowledge at first hand. — From the very 
first day, the pupils should be made to feel that the study of 
agriculture is the study of the actual problems of the farm 
— crops, soils, animals, and all else that goes to make up 
the life of the farm. To "get a lesson," is therefore not 
to commit to memory what the text may say on a certain 
subject, but to use the text-book and all other available 
helps to master fully the problem at hand in the study of 
an ear of corn, the preparation of the seed bed, the fertilis- 
ing of a field, or the feeding and management of a nock 
or herd. 

Use of the text-book. — The text-book is arranged to 
give as natural and interesting an approach as possible to 
each chapter or topic. There is hardly a text-book lesson 
for a single day which does not provide for some practical 
home and field study in connection with the subject under 



viii TO THE TEACHER 

consideration. The lesson assignment should usually first 
oe studied from the text, the field, laboratory or home 
work on the topic then being- taken up. The topics for 
investigation and the questions throughout the text should 
always be worked out fully and thoroughly. In many in- 
stances the teacher will desire to add questions or topics to 
supplement those of the book. Only in such practical ways 
can the work be made interesting and vital. 

Use of note-books. — The pupils should be provided 
with note-books of uniform size. In these should be kept 
a record of all demonstrations, experiments, field trips and 
excursions and observations. Here should also be worked 
out all the exercises and problems required in the text, and 
those assigned by the teacher. Drawings, diagrams, tables 
or any other matter brought into the course should find 
their way into the note-book. Pictures of farm animals, 
crops, machines, farm buildings and the like, should be as- 
sembled and form a part of the record of the course. 
Every note-book should be neat and well kept, and ar- 
ranged in a businesslike manner. 

Correlation with other subjects. — Agriculture may 
well be made in many sciiools to serve as the basis of corre- 
lation with other subjects. Much of the arithmetic can 
be taught more efficiently and naturally from the lessons 
in agriculture than in any other way. Language work, 
including composition and letter-writing, can be related to 
much of the work of the agriculture course. Industrial 
geography is suggested by every chapter in the text. Free- 
hand and mechanical drawing, manual training and domes- 
tic science all connect easily and naturally with the lessons 
and problems of the course. 

Connection with home work. — Constant reference is 
made in the text to the crops, gardens, stock, soil and other 
interests found on the farm or at home. This is not by 



TO THE TEACHER ix 

accident. The purpose is to make the study of agriculture 
interesting and helpful by connecting it immediately with 
the homes. The teacher who will faithfully carry out this 
concrete method of instruction will find growing m his pu- 
pils a firm and abiding enthusiasm in the subject never to 
be hoped for in mere text-book study. The great purpose 
and the highest success is to get the lessons of the text 
translated into life and action. The work on agricultural 
projects assigned in connection with the course should, as 
far as possible, be done under the guidance of the teacher 
and should receive school credit. 

Demonstrations and experiments. — The difference 
between demonstrations and experiments should be clearly 
understood by the class. The idea in an experiment is to 
investigate, discover or verify some truth. In a demon- 
stration some well-known truth is illustrated, shown or 
demonstrated to others, with the purpose of convincing 
them of its merits and leading them to adopt it in practise. 

8. Seasonal Order of Study 

Seasonal order impossible in text. — It is wholly im- 
possible to arrange any text on agriculture so that the top- 
ics will follow the seasons throughout the year. If this 
could be done it would make the teacher's work much sim- 
pler and easier. But seasonal variations do not come at 
the same time in different regions, nor does the order of 
the crops and gardens follow the arrangement oi the school 
year. 

Order to be based on crop sequence. — Because of 
these facts, it must be left to the teacher to select such an 
order from the text as best fits the crops and seasons of 
his region. It is not necessary that the chapters be taken in 
succession as they occur. For northern schools opening in the 
late summer, the corn chapter undoubtedly will be best far 



X TO THE TEACHER 

a beginning. The potato chapter should be taken up before 
the crop is harvested if possible. It may be referred to 
again at planting time in the spring. The gai lien chapters 
should be studied during the late winter or early spring, 
and again referred to as the planting, spraying or tillage is 
under consideration. The teacher need not be afraid even 
to divide a chapter, using a part at two or more different 
seasons if this seems best. For example, the field study of 
corn should be begun in the fall with the ripening crop, 
but the testing and grading of seed corn should be reserved 
for winter study. 

The greater part of the study of farm animals can be 
successfully carried on during the winter, though certain of 
the features should be taken up in the fall or spring. Some 
of the work on goils can also be utilized for winter study. 
Actual field study and demonstrations will, of course, be 
carried on when the ground is not frozen. The great point 
is to base the lessons on the immediate activities of the 
farm during just as much of the year as possible, making 
the assignments from the text conform to the seasonal or- 
der of the locality. 

9. Reference Material 

Every school where agriculture is taught should be 
stocked with a number of standard texts on each of the 
divisions of the subject. The library should contain a 
standard cyclopedia of agriculture. It is also desirable to 
have the Agricultural Year Book of the United States De 
partment of Agriculture, and the Census Reports that deal 
with the subject of agriculture. Arrangements can be 
made for the receipt of the current crop reports. 

Government publications. — The United States De- 
partment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C, is in position 
to give help to all citizens on the subject of agriculture. 



TO THE TEACHER xi 

A large number of Partners' Bulletins, circulars, reports 
and special instructions on almost every conceivable agricul- 
tural or home economics subject, can be secured by address- 
ing the Secretary of Agriculture. Most of the publications 
are free and are intended for the use of the public. This 
material makes a very necessary and helpful supplement to 
the text-book, and should be constantly referred to. It is 
well to provide some library or filing arrangement to con- 
tain such material, so that it can be properly classified and 
cared for. 

State agricultural colleges and experiment stations. — 
Every state has its agricultural institution. These colleges 
publish a great deal of valuable material on the agricultural 
problems of their respective states. In most cases the ma- 
terial is free to all citizens of the state, and should be freely 
drawn upon for school use. A list of the agricultural col- 
leges and experiment stations will be found in the chapter 
on "Miscellaneous Information." 



INDEX 



INDEX 

Alfalfa, 

as forage, 135 

as soil renewer, 136 

chapter on, 133 

chief region of, 134 

enemies of, 143 

feeding value of, 1-^6 

harvesting of, I'^l 

soil requirements for, 138 

study of plant, • 133 

Animals, 

farm and agriculture, 265 

farm, section on, 265 

food supplying, 267 

products of, 269 

work of farm, " 265 

Ants, H 

Aphis, 



corn root, 



11 



Arsenate of Lead Spray, 211 

Babcock, 

steps in test, 278 

test for butter fat, 277 

Bacteria, 

nitrifying, 117 

Beef, 

breeds of cattle, 287 

feeding cattle, . 289 



INDEX 

Birds, 

and their food, 432 

chapter on, 432 

harmful, 437 

methods of protecting, 437 

useful varieties of, 434 

Blotter Seed Testers, 39 

Bordeaux Mixture, 208 

Bread, 64 

Canning Fruits akiD Vegetables, 

chapter on, 217 

recipes for, 218 

time table for, . 222 

Cattle, 

beef, breeds of, 287 

chapter on, 272 

club projects, 294 

dairy, 272 

feeding beef, * 289 

play contests with, 292 

tuberculosis in, 289 

Chickens, 

; ■ breeds of, 349 

chapter on, 346 
diseases of, ' 367 

feeding for eggs, 358 

feeding of, 357 

houses for, 363 

the raising of, 353 

Chinch -Bugs, 76 

Clovers, The, 

alsike, 130 

as forage, 121 



INDEX 

Llovers, The {Continued). 

as soil renewer, 122 

chapter on, 119 



crimson, 



vegetable garden. 



131 



enemies of red, 128 

harvesting of, 127 

impurities of seed, 126 

red-clover plant, 119 

successful growing of, 125 
Club Work, 

cattle, 294 

corn, 62 

forage, 118 

fruit garden, 199 

hogs, 335 

horses, , • 314 

potato, 111 

poultry, 372 

roads, 430 

sheep, 344 

soil, 262 

tomato, 207 



1/ / 



Commercial Seed Tester, 36 

Corn, 

barren stalks, 8 

binder, 52 

chapter on, 1 

club work, 62 

cultivation of, 48 

demonstrations, 61 

depth of planting, 46 

ear worms, 13 

enemies of, 9 



INDEX 

Corn (Continued). 53 

for silo, 39 

grading seed, ^ 5O 

harvesting and storing, 27 

judging, 2 

plant, 61 

play contests, 38 

preparing seed for planter, ^^ 

root aphis, 43 

roots and moisture, 9 

root worm, 43 

seed bed, 14 

seed saving, 24 

seed selection bed, 33 

seed testing box, 53 

shocker, the, 13 

smut, 5 

stand of, 52 

stover, value of, 8 

suckers, 31 

testing seed, 16 

time for gathering seed, 45 

time for planting, 20 

types of, 58 

uses of. 59 

uses of stalk, 22 

varieties of, 1 
yield of. 

County Agent, 404 

and the school. 403 

financial support of, 4OI 
the agricultural, 



INDFX 

Cow, 

dairy t)'pe of, 275 

feeding of dairy, . 281 

judging the dairy, 277 

milk tests of the, 277 

Cow-Peas, 

as forage, 148 

as soil renovator, 148 

plant, 146 

Crops, 

forage, 113 

rotation of, 12 

Cutworms, 12 

Dairy, 

breeds, 279 

profitable and unprofitable cows, 273 

types of cows, 275 

Demonstrations, 

cattle,. 292 

corn, 61 

forage, 118 

fruit garden, 195 

hogs, 334 

horses, 313 

potato, 1 1 1 

poultry, 371 

roads, 428 

sheep, 344 

soil, 261 

tomato, 206 

vegetable garden, 177 



INDEX 
Drainage, 



cost of. 


260 


surface. 


256 


under, 


258 


Eggs, 




for hatching, 


353 


producing and marketing. 


360 


rules for production of. 


361 


Farm, 




administration of, 


377 


and home management. 


375 


buildings for the, 


386 


implements and mechanics, chapter on. 


408 


selecting and planning, 


375 


the home, > , 


384 


Farm Economics, 




section on. 


375 


Fertilization of Plants, 


5 


Fertilizers, Commercial, 


243 


Forage Crops, 




chapter on, 


113 


club project, 


118 


importance of. 


114 


region of, 


115 


Fungicides, 


208 


Garden, The Fruit, 




care of, 


183 


club projects. 


199 


demonstrations. 


195 


enemies of, 


185 



INDEX 

Garden, The Fruit (Continued), . 

plan of, 180 

play contests, 197 

pruning of, 184 

soil and location for, 180 

spraying, 188 

varieties in, 181 

Garden, The Vegetable, 

chapter on, 165 

clubs, 177 

cultivation of, 171 

demonstrations, 177 

insect enemies of, 174 

location and soil for, . 166 

plan for, 170 

planting time, 168 

play contests, 177 

Grasses, 

for meadows, 155 

for pastures, 160 

uses of, 155 

varieties of, 113 

Grasshoppers, 78 

Harvesting, 

alfalfa crop, 141 

by "hogging down" corn, 56 

red-clover crop, 127 

the corn crop, 50 

the potato crop, 102 

the wheat crop, 71 

with corn binder, 52 

Hessian Fly, The, ,78 



INDEX 

Hogs, 

balanced ration for, 326 

breeds of, 316 

care of, 319 

chapter on, 315 

chief region for, 315 
club projects, "^ - 335 

demonstrations with, 334 

diseases of, 328 

feeding, 2i23 

houses, 319 

play contests, 235 

prevention of cholera in, 232 

Home, 

and farm management, 3/ 5 

beautifying the grounds, 389 

grounds and wood lot, 389 

Horses, 

breeds of, 302 

care of, 307 

chapter on, 296 

classes of, 297 

clubs, 314 

defects of, 306 

demonstrations with, 313 

feeding of, 310 

judging of, 305 

leading states for, 296 

play contests, 314 

Horticulture, 

section on, 165 

Hotbed, The, 171 

Humus, 227 



INDEX 

Implements, 

farm and mechanics, chapter ot^^ 408 
Inoculation, 

of soil for alfalfa, 140 

Insecticides, 208 

Kerosene Emulsion, 214 

Legumes, 

chapter on, 146 

for meadows, 155 

for pastures, 159 

uses of, 115 

varieties of, 114 

Lime, 

use of on soils, 246 

Lime Sulphur Spray, 210 

Manure, 

application of, 242 

barnyard, 238 

green, 242 

preventing loss from, 241 

Meadows, 

care of, 156 

chapter on, 154 

grasses for, 155 

permanent, 158 

requirements of, 154 

seed mixtures for, ' 156 

i^ILK, 

cooling of, 286 

producing clean, 283 

tests for the dairy cow, 277 



IMDEX 

Nitrogen, 243 

: commercial fertilizers, 117 

gathering bacteria, 
KoTE-BooKS, 

records in, 

80 

Oats, Chapter ON, 

Paris Green Spray, 159 

Pastures, ^^^ 

care of, 160 

grasses for, 160 

mixtures of seed for. 159 
requirements of. 

Peanut, The, 152 

uses of, 245 
Phosphorus Fertilizers. 

Planter, ^^ 

grading seed for, 41 

testing the, 

Play Contests, 292 

cattle, 61 

corn, 1^^ 

fruit garden, 335 

hogs, 314 

horses, 111 

potato, 372 

poultry, 430 

roads, 344 

sheep, 262 

soil, 2?^ 

tomato, l^' 
vegetable garde-n, 



tNDEX 

Pollen, 4, 26 

Potassium Fertilizers, 245 
Potatoes, 

as a farm crop, 99 

chapter on, 98 

cutting the seed, 106 

clubs. 111 

demonstrations. 111 

enemies, 107 

play contests, 111 



region, 



99 



selection of seed, ; 103 

soil and seed bed for, 100 

storing of, 102 

the plant, 98 

Poultry, 

chapter on, 346 

clubs, 372 

demonstrations, 371 

diseases of, 367 

housing of, 363 

increasing demands, 347 

leading states for, 347 

play contests, 372 

Pruning, 

of fruit trees, 184 

tomatoes, 202 

"Rag-Doll" Seed Tester, ^ 36 

Ration, 

balanced for dairy cows, 282 

balanced for hogs, 326 

for fattening chickens, 359 



INDEX 

Ration {Continued). 

for laying hens, < 358 

for sheep, 341 

Resin Lime Spray, 214 

Roads, 

chapter on, 420 

construction of earth, 425 

club projects, 430 

demonstrations with, 428 

importance of public, 420 

location of, 422 

maintenance of earth, 426 

play contests, 430 

types of, 422 

Rope-Tying, 412 

Rotation of Crops, 12 

and fertility, 248 

plan for, 249 

Rust, 

wheat, 74 

Sawdust Seed Testers, 33 

Scab, 

in wheat, 7Z 

potato, 107 

Seed, 

bed and planting, 43 

bed for wheat, 70 

care of shelled, 40 

cleaning red clover, 126 

curing of corn, ~ 18 

cutting potato, 106 

germination box, 33 

grading for planter, 39 



INDEX 

Seed {Continued). 

loss from poor, 16 

mixtures for meadows, 156 

saving of, 14- 

selecting wheat, 70 

selection bed, 24 

selection of potato, 103 

testing, 31 

various testers for, 36 

Seed Bed, 

preparing the, * 44 

Sheep, 

agricultural importance of, 336 

breeds of, 338 

chapter on, 336 

club projects, 344 

demonstrations, 343 

feeding of, 340 

play contests, 344 

Shocker, 

the corn, 53 

Silo, The, 53 

Smut, 

corn, 13 

treatment for wheat, 76 

Soil, 

acid and liming, 247 

barnyard manure and, 238 

capacity of for water, 252 

chapter on, 225 

club projects, 262 

cultivation of, 102 

demonstrations, 261 

drainage, 256 



INDEX 

Soil (Continued). 

erosion of, 232 

fertili*^y and legumes, 122 

fertility of, 236 

forms of water in, 251 

for potatoes, 100 

inoculation for alfalfa, 140 

moisture, chapter on, 251 

organic matter in, 227 

origin of, 225 

play contests', 262 

requirements for alfalfa, • 138 

structure of, 230 

texture of, 228 

tillage and water, 254 

Soy-Beans, 

feeding value of, 152 

Spraying, 

machines for, 191 

mixtures for, 208 

of fruit gardens, 188 

tomatoes, 204 

Stover, Corn, 52 

Tilth of Soils, 231 

Tomato, The, 

as a garden crop, 201 

chapter on, 201 

club project, 207 

culture, 202 

demonstrations with, 206 

harvesting and marketing, 204 

play contests, 206 



INDEX 

Tomato, The (Continued). 

pruning and staking, 2G2 

varieties of, 202 

Tuberculosis, 

in cattle, 289 

in hogs, 330 

suppressing in cattle, 290 

tuberculin test for, 290 

Tubers, 5*9 

Vegetables, 

enemies of, 1/4 

garden, 165 

transplanting of, 1/1 



Vetch, 

common, 



150 



hairy, 150 

types of, 150 



'>^') 



Water, 

capillary, 

gravitational, 251 

Weeds, 

as enemies of alfalfa, 143 

killing in corn-field, 46 

soil and tillage, 254 

Wheat, 

chapter on, 64 

diseases and enemies of, 72 

harvesting, 7\ 

importance of, 64 

planting, 71 

seed bed for, 70 



INDEX 
\Viii:at [Continued) . 

selecting seed, ''0 

spring. 6" 

types of, • oo 

winter, ^^ 

WiREWORMS, ^- 

WooD Lot, 

chapter on, 389 

enemies of, 396 

the farm, 392 

Worms, 

corn root, " 



m 



